In the Dark
by Blue Flaming Wings
Summary: A betrayal and it's aftermath. What exactly happened in the dark?
1. Chapter 1

Baam lay there, in his pool of blood that stained the rocks, unable to do anything but stare up at the school of fishes that swam in the shinsoo up above. He had not done even that much, had not even sat up, his mind working at a furious pace yet still so hollow. Like a chunk of him had been carved out.

"You know; I'm being very kind by being so patient with you. It's kind of out of character for me."

He tore his eyes away from the swirling mass of shinsoo above to look … to look at Hwa Ryun. The girl sat on one of the rocks, cross-legged, staff balanced on her knees. From her half-masked face, she gave him this smirksmile that he could not even begin to discern – it turned out that there were a great many things that Baam did not know.

He eased himself up to his feet. Baam could still feel the power, so useless to him now, flowing about him, filling him. It didn't heal his wounds, evaporate the blood that clung to his tattered clothes, but it let him take a step. Then another. Baam looked down at Hwa Ryun, a single question piercing through the haze in his mind.

"What now?"

"Now," she said, standing up and dusting herself off, "You come with me."

In silence they walked to one of the rock walls that made up the "wine glass" of the testing arena. Once there, Baam paused and shot a look over to Hwa Ryun.

Who promptly grabbed him by the shoulder and shoved him towards the wall.

"Wha – " Baam started to shout as he raised his arms up in a reflective block, but he felt no contact at all. His body just phased through the wall, popping through it – as if it had just been water, insubstantial and slight. He had fallen through it like –

He cut off that thought violently, just in time for Hwa Ryun to step through the illusion, seeming to emerge out of the rock wall itself. One glance at him was enough to widen her grin. "Such a scary face," she said, "What are you thinking about?"

Baam opened his mouth. "Nothing." He closed it.

Where before they had stood in a rocky, jagged seafloor – each protrusion jutting up into the shinsoo – now they found themselves in a chamber – a large, circular space.

And there, at the top of the chamber, stood Yu Han Sung, hands clasped behind his back, robed in his usual yellow and blue.

" _You_." Baam didn't even notice Hwa Ryun call out to him, hand outstretched, he didn't even really see the sight of the room around him swim and speed by as he charged. Baam snapped out his hands to grab two fistfuls of his clothes, but suddenly the weight of his arms increased and he nearly fell to the ground then and there – body drawn to the cavern floor like attracting magnets.

"I'll overlook that because you've literally hit rock bottom, but do try to calm yourself."

"You," Baam snarled that conversation flashing about in his head, "You are behind all of this, aren't you? Tell me what's going on!"

"I know you must have many questions but you'll have to be a bit more patient for now. Rest up."

Yu Han Sung left down a side tunnel lit by shimmering torches imbedded in the stone. When he did the pressure on Baam evaporated so it no longer felt as if a giant hand pressed him down. But still he did not budge. All strength had just seeped out of him.

"Alright, enough of that, up you go." Baam saw a brief flash of red before he was lifted to his feet. "Quite a hassle this god is," she muttered.

"What was that?" Baam asked. But even so his voice seemed indistinct, faint and echoing to his ears.

"Nothing. Come on, let's get you to bed before you die on us."

Hwa Ryun guided him down a side pathway, branching off of the hallway that Yu Han Sung vanished into. The corridor opened up into another chamber, this one less cavernous and more like an actual bedroom, complete with furnishings. Baam wasn't sure how far he'd walked from the test arena now.

They weren't alone. By the bed, a woman with fair skin, black sclera and red irises stood, arms crossed, as she looked at Baam as he crossed the doorway. The sudden new face caught Baam off-guard. The woman nodded at the bed. "The name is Jinsu," she said, "I'll be taking a look at your injuries."

Baam eased himself onto the bed, and the newcomer placed a hand on his forehead. She frowned.

"Do you have a fever?"

"Fever?" Baam tested the word out, "Probably not. I'm not even sure I can get one. I've never had a fever be-"

Baam cut himself off, but he was too slow.

"Before you came into the Tower," It shouldn't have surprised him that the woman knew he was an Irregular, but it did. "A piece of advice. You'll be happier if you forget all that."

Before Baam had a chance to respond, blue light poured out of the woman's hand, washing over his body. It felt … odd. As if the technique did more than just heal his cuts and bruises, but imprinted itself into his own baang. _Oh!_ Baam thought, _Just like the Fast Skip technique that Quant-ssi – ow!_

Baam winced and shifted out of the woman's touch. He hadn't noticed how much he hurt until some of the pain started to fade. There was not a spec of skin on Baam's body not covered in a cut, and though he had stopped bleeding blood still soaked through his clothes – coating the E13 on his collar.

The light faded and Baam found himself just lying on the bed – whole but sore. Through half-lidded eyes he looked about the room – then bolted up straight.

"Where's Hwa Ryun?" He shouldn't feel so panicked but he did. Being alone, in this sterilized room with only a stranger felt odd to him, gave him an odd sort of nostalgia that he didn't need.

"She left as you were being healed," The woman, Jinsu?, said, "She comes and goes as she pleases."

"You've known her long then."

"As long as anyone knows each other in – I shouldn't have said that."

"In what?"

"In FUG," a new voice suddenly spoke up, Baam glanced up to see almost an identical version of the woman, but male. He was pale faced as well, with black and red eyes, though by one of them three lines with hearts at the end could be seen.

"Jiggu," she said.

"Dear sister. I take it this is our new candidate?"

"Candidate? For what? Who are you people?" Fear began to bubble up in Baam. The whole situation felt off, like some unspoken tension hung about them – waiting to drown him in its implications.

"Look what you've done," the woman said, "You've said too much."

"Well, no going back now," the man said. He dragged a chair away from the wall then sat on it, arms slumped over the back, "So what do you want to know?"

"Who are you people?" Baam repeated.

"We are FUG – the Federation Under Grace."

 _Grace?_ But Baam had other things to worry about, "What is it? What do you want from me?"

"FUG is a criminal organization. One that is devoted to one, singular, purpose – to kill Zahard and the Ten Warriors. The ones who will do so are our eleven Slayers. You are a candidate for the position."

 _ **No.**_

Baam jerked up, ready to throw off the covers and bolt, but then he felt it. Like before with Yu Han Sung it felt like a giant invisible hand grasped him by the shoulders and held the boy down to the bed. It felt … different … than before, as if his body had adjusted to it and it's hold had become slack on him. Though Baam was still pressed to the sheets, he wiggled, trying to shove himself off the bed.

"Oh?" He said, smile widening.

The man, Jiggu, leaned over, face above his face. "I know that this must be surprising for you," he began, as if measuring each word, "And your hesitance speaks well of you. _But they do not deserve it._ We will climb up the Tower, grasp them where they sit on their precious thrones and _**tear them down**_."

Before, months ago, eons ago it felt, he had asked _her_ a single question – why do people fight, why do they kill? Hatred she answered. If bad people tried to hurt your friends, you would fight them, you would be angry. Since coming to the Tower Baam had found it filled with hatred, filled with death, but it was not until right then that he saw true fire – burning, fierce hatred that churned in his eyes. This man, whoever he was, had little else in him but hatred.

"It will be done. Either you will rise above and be one of the gods that brings our dearest wish to fruition or you are useless."

With that, the force holding Baam still vanished as the man vanished too out of the room.

"I'm sorry about that."

"It's alright," Baam said, he wasn't sure if it was. "There's a reason, isn't there?"

"Yes," Jinsu sighed. "But we cannot tell you, sorry. Until we are sure of you we cannot tell you more."

Baam sat up, hands raising to his soaked bangs. Through the cracks between his fingers Baam looked down onto the sheets below – the bed, the room, the furnishings – they were all so exquisite, seemed so manmade, like another room up on the Floor of Tests, so much so that he nearly forgot that the outside looked nothing more than a rocky cavern. Sickeningly familiar.

"I still don't understand. Why me?"

"What do you know of contracts?"

Baam raised his head from his hands, looking at her with hollow eyes. "Contracts?"

"Yes, you can use shinsoo so you must have made one."

Baam wracked his mind for the answer. It wasn't too hard to find. "In order to use shinsoo, you need to get permission from the Guardian of the Floor. This is called getting a contract with a Guardian. This must be done on every floor. You contact Guardians through your Pocket. What does this have to do with anything?"

"Those aren't the only contracts that are possible. When Zahard and the Ten Great Warriors first entered the Tower they all made contracts with the Guardians. One such contract gave them immortality, save for Hendo Lok Bloodmadder. He made a unique contract to trade his children and descendants' lifespans to gain immortality."

Baam's eyes became half-lidded, eyes glancing down at the sheets. "I see."

"However, the most important contract is the one Zahard made on the 134th Floor. He cannot be killed by any of the residents of the Tower, thus only an Irregular can do the deed."

Realization snapped into place for him, causing Baam to jump to his feet, covers hitting the floor. "That's!" His throat constricted, tightening on itself. He had to swallow before he could force the words out, had to calm himself. "That's why it happened! That's why you want me! And you forced Rachel to betray me to get – "

"No. Believe what you want about FUG, but we did not force her. Her reasons were her own."

"That is. But that's!"

Jinsu sighed, shoulders slumping, before standing up. "It's a lot to take in," she started, "I understand if you need time. I'll get you something to eat." She left.

Baam went to the door and twisted the doorknob.

Locked.

….

The next morning Baam found his door unlocked.

He stepped outside to find a long open tunnel, the same as before, but now completely empty. 25th Baam followed along it regardless, taking slow, measured steps, glancing around, then dashing. His feet padded against the rock ground as he entered into the circular chamber. He scanned the walls and found the one he had slipped through before. Baam rushed up to it, pressed his hands against it.

Solid.

"You lost your chance."

Baam turned around to see the red-headed Hwa Ryun smiling at him, the staff she used to fight with the they first met in her hand being dragged behind her. It created a groove in the dirt. She really does go where she wants.

"What do you mean?"

"Last night the water from the testing chamber was drained in the search for your body. Obviously, it wasn't found, but the fact you didn't escape before then set your path."

The blood in his body ran cold. "Wait. What are you saying?"

"I'm saying that 25th Baam is officially dead."

"If I just go out and let them know – "

"And nearly be assassinated again?"

"What?"

She sighed, her smile shifting into a smirk. "That Wave Controller instructor we had? Yuga? His real name was Lo Po Bia Ren – he was part of RED, the Royal Enforcement Division. The moment he found out that you were an Irregular he decided to send the Bull after you. That is what you can expect if they find out that 25th Baam, the Irregular, is alive."

A new silence was born as Baam found his words dying at that. He had nothing to say, he had nothing to think. He just stared, out over her shoulder, at one of the stalagmite that formed a pillar up into the ceiling. He saw the grooves and edges and sought words.

Hwa Ryun found them.

"Viole."

"What?"

"Your new name. Viole. Do you like it?"

"Does it mean anything?"

"Who knows?"

"I … I don't know. I don't know anything."

He glanced over to the side again, his eyes scanning that stalagmite. He did not think of that cave, did not think of her, at that moment, but rather of different faces – so smiling, so happy, so different from where he was now and where he had been. A face with blue hair and a towering giant looking for prey, yet still breaking out into a smile.

Hwa Ryun did not keep him to his thoughts long.

"Is it so bad, I wonder?"

"What?"

"You were discovered by her on the 25th night of a certain month," Hwa Ryun began, stepping closer, eyes honed on his, tearing Baam's gaze away from his surroundings. "That day became your birthday of sorts. She likely named you before she left you all alone again."

"What are you saying?"

"Rachel didn't put much thought into that name, did she?"

He didn't even consciously think it, decide to act. One moment Baam's hand was at his side, the next it swept to her face and smacked against her cheek with a resounding thwack that resounded in the empty cavern. He stumbled a step back, eyes wide, voice trembling. "I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to – "

"I reject your identity and you apologize? It's fine."

He looked at her. She looked at him. That smirksmile had never left her face.

"Why didn't you block it?"

"I would never raise a hand against you."

…..

The next couple days were a test of patience. Hwa Ryun had vanished once more, and Jiggu, whenever Baam saw him, just glared, which left only Jinsu to talk with when she showed up to check his pulse and other vitals.

"He's going to ask for an answer, you know," she said, the afternoon of the second day.

"Who?"

"The director of this Floor. Yu Han Sung."

Baam's face scrunched up in a scowl, his mind clouding in a haze of red. "It's still no. It'll always be no."

"I never got around to telling you why Jiggu and I are in FUG, did I?"

That pierced his haze of anger. "I thought you were going to wait until you trusted me."

"It's not a story I like to tell but it could help you decide."

"Alright."

"My last name is Reinu-Eurasia. Jiggu and I were born into a branch family of the Eurasias. Eurasias as a whole have an exceptional capability for shinsoo. Our branch in particular excelled in healing. We had a code of sorts, we would heal anyone who needed it, who would die without our aid. One day, we found a member of the Bidau family. We knew of the feud between the Eurasia and Bidau families – who didn't? But we healed him anyway."

"What happened?"

"At first? Nothing. The man got up and went on his way." Then she sighed, her eyes unfocused – staring off to some even that Baam could not reach. "Then we heard the news. That man, Po Bidau Hayong, was the head of a splinter cell of the Bidau family that did not make it into the Research Society – "Gustang's Rejects" they were called. They terrorized many, specifically the main branch of the Eurasia family. After he was healed he led an assault on one of their compounds and wiped it out. When the main family heard they were furious, even more so when they found out that we saved his life and inadvertently caused it to happen. That's when they decided to make an example out of us."

At that moment, Baam remember how he reacted to Androssi's story, how he just assumed that at that kitchen table that her sisters shared their food with her. Something similar was on the tips of his lips then, it would be so easy to imagine that the main branch fined them, wrote a new law forbidding healing strangers or requiring background checks, but Baam was many things, but he was no fool. He knew a pattern when he saw it, he knew what could have pushed them into FUG.

"They attacked, didn't they?"

"Yes. The entire branch family was wiped out, man, woman and child."

Baam rose his head at that, eyes widening despite himself.

"Well, I'm sure that's given you a lot to think about, but I'm afraid I'm going to have to leave you alone for now."

"What?"

"Jiggu is heading off on a mission, and I'm going to take some Regular brat as an apprentice."

"I … I guess I hope you'll have a good time."

She frowned at that, crossing her arms and tilting her head. "I'm not sure about that, honestly. From what I hear the kid's a bit … odd. Never stops smiling."

"Isn't that a good thing?"

"Not the sort of smiling you're thinking of Baam. Come on."

They stepped outside of the room, and before Baam even fully crossed the threshold, Jinsu shut the door closed. She locked it with a click.

"What are you doing?"

"Sorry, but we can't leave you alone in the room unsupervised. You're going to have to wait out here for Yu Han Sung."

 _Why?_ But instead he said, "I thought he wasn't returning for a couple more days."

"He isn't."

….

With the sole door in the area closed and locked, Baam found himself in the circular rock cavern, the jagged ground digging into the soles of his feet. Despite himself, Baam began to pace, moving back and forth in front of the wall he entered through.

Other than his footsteps silence reigned.

Silence reigned because he was alone.

Is this part of their strategy? Talk to him, display the situation in the Tower and their motives and then just let Baam stew in his own thoughts? Well, it wasn't working. As the minutes drained on, Baam felt his anger mounting moment by moment, he slammed his hands against the rock wall, as if he pushed hard enough he could just slip through and into the Guardian's test arena. How did that work, by the way? How did they get that, demon or whatever, onto this floor? Was the Guardian in on it?

Baam spent some time leaving the chamber to explore the other tunnels. While the left one dead ended at the locked room there was another corridor that Yu Han Sung went down. He had more luck there. Seven different doors awaited him at the end of the hallway, three on each wall and one on the end in the middle. All locked.

Of course.

All the standing up and walking about, all the pressing on that sliver of rock wall that Baam knew had passed through before, tired him out. After losing strength in his legs, he just sat on the ground, curled up on himself, just staring and staring at the sickeningly familiar sight before him.

Because it had always been like that before, alone, by himself, in that dusty, rocky place, where the only sounds that could be heard were the haggard breaths of his own breathing, where all the effort he put in, all the striving to build that stupid tower of rocks – all of it had been meaningless. The empty space around him of the cavern closed in, and choked him, and pushed and pulled against his mind, made it shrink on itself.

How he wished for Hwa Ryun to appear. Anyone just so he was no longer alone, alone with his thoughts and the whispering of his mind of Sorry Baam. The way the water swam up, and sped up all about him, how he drowned – the shinsoo filling his lungs and pain spread through his chest and –

"Haven't you made up your mind yet? It's been four days now. I think it's time."

That one meeting would set everything in motion.


	2. Chapter 2

"Do you need another practical example?"

Baam … Viole … looked at his latest acquaintance. Ha Jinsung had been assigned as his martial arts instructor and if the Ranker had any qualms with his new student he did not show it (unlike Jinsu who did – loudly). He smiled, or at least the boy think he did, whenever he looked at him, a slim line that cut across the man's face.

"No, I'm good." He still remembered the last time he had a "practical example". He didn't need to be hit by _another_ Flare Wave Explosion.

"Alright, take a stance."

Viole took a back stance. He transferred his weight onto his back leg, and kept his front leg light, barely touching the ground. Viole put his hands up in a guard – open palm.

Then Jinsung struck – at a speed that cracked the air like a thunderpeal.

He flooded his body with shinsoo, he felt it reinforce his body, his limbs. He dove to the side, right arm tucked under his left, and felt the impact, the shockwave, in Jinsung's passing. Viole hurried to his feet, righting himself and putting up a guard.

Then he froze.

Ha Jinsung didn't just have that slight smile anymore, but a full fledge smile had broken across his face. "You dodged," he said with no little amount of wonder, "Last time you didn't. And you even used Shinsoo Reinforcement."

"That's good?"

"It's incredible, 'Ole." Then he amended, "Well, not so much so for monsters like Urek, but Regulars from the Ten Families and Zahard Princesses can do it when they enter the Floor of Test, but they definitely didn't learn after one try!"

 _After one time of being hit._

"Even Karaka didn't learn that quickly."

"Who's Karaka?"

Just like that his excitement deflated, the smile leaving his face, "Nevermind, Viole. As of right now I'm going to try to hit you, try to focus everything on dodging."

"What? But – "

And he moved.

….

After the "training" Ba-Viole entered into his room… of sorts. He hadn't been expecting that day when he was healed by Jinsu that it would be the start of a weeklong stay in the tiny room but it had been. When Viole found himself alone he had tried the other doors but as always they remained locked, otherwise he slept in the room, trained in the circular chamber and ate when he could.

When he opened the door he found Hwa Ryun waiting for him.

She sat in one of the plush chairs in the corner of the room. Another sat right opposite of it that hadn't been there before. Hwa Ryun must have moved it over when she entered. Viole took the offered seat and as he did he could feel her gaze scan over him, looking at his bruised and battered form.

"I see that that Bargain Bin didn't go easy on you."

He must look as bad as he felt, but Viole latched onto something else, "Bargain Bin?"

"It's just a nickname of sorts I gave him. Ha Jinsung always buys the nicest but cheapest clothes, and his perm looks like it was taken out of some B-rated film."

"Uh, are you sure you should be saying that? He's a High Ranker."

"The truth's the truth."

Viole had the distinct impression that he didn't want to piss this woman off.

"…So should we begin?" Viole asked.

This all started yesterday when, after a brief talk with Jinsung, it became clear that the boy _literally_ knew nothing of the Tower. His martial arts instructor had too much on his plate to teach him the basics of the Tower as well so that duty went to the red-haired guide. After all, guide duties or no, she would be much freer than the other Rankers in FUG.

 _How did she get into FUG anyway?_

He didn't have long to think about it.

"First off, who rules the Tower?"

"Zahard."

"And?"

He didn't snap this one out immediately and had to think about it. But only for a moment, "The Ten Families."

He smiled. Baam had only heard that term a couple times but he still –

"Who are they?"

His smile dropped.

"I want to tell you now – I don't know all of them."

"That's fine. Tell me what you do know."

The faces flash into his mind's eye, and as he does he says them. "Ha," Baam says remembering the Princess of Zahard that came crashing into him upon entering the Tower, "Eurasia," was the next and that brought to mind Jinsu and her scarier twin brother, "and – "

He pauses, eyes glancing down to the carpeted floor, staring at the elaborate designs, becoming half-lidded. "And Koon."

Hwa Ryun made a humming noise … then leaned over and flicked him on the forehead.

Baam wheeled back, clutching at his head and pouting at her. "What was that for?"

She might as well have been blind in _both_ eyes and deaf as well. "Alright, get comfortable, this is going to be a long session."

So he did. So she started.

"Before we begin, you must understand that all of the Ten Great Families are "blessed" with a different ability. In fact, you can say that the Tower itself is made up of those who are blessed, who are chosen, and those who are not." There was something … odd … in her tone as she said that, as if there was some greater meaning to that which only Hwa Ryun herself knew. "Of the three you've mentioned, the Ha family is renowned for their immense physical strength, the Eurasias for their exceptional Shinsoo control and the Koon family for its cunning intelligence."

That made Baam crack a smile. _Yeah, that sounds about right._

"The other seven are the Bidau family, which runs the Research Association and is in a longstanding feud with the Eurasia family, they are also the sole clan able to produce Wonsulas, the Tu Perie family who are well known as Light Bearers, the Ari family who are well known scouts, the Yeon family who are skilled fire-users, the Bok-dol family who are exceptional Spearbearers and the Hendo family who have great defenses and shinsoo resistance … did you get all that?"

Baam smiled. "No."

Hwa Ryun sighed.

…..

Viole once again joined Ha Jinsung. The mood from the earlier lesson had dissipated, dispersed, just shattered and left him grim as he rejoined his martial arts instructor. For his part, Jinsung just nodded as Viole rejoined before snapping his head over to the side.

There stood another golem. It seemed similar to the one he had trained against before but slimmer. The blue steel core in the center of its chest hummed with vibrant energy, to his eyes the young boy saw a glimmer of a white aura seeping out of the gem and over the mass of earth. In many ways it reminded Viole of the aura that surrounded that Lizard from the 2nd Floor, Anak Zahard.

 _Does that mean it's as strong as her?_

"This test is fairly simple. You need to dodge all of its blows and hit it with Shinsoo Reinforced punches and the Flare Wave Explosion technique. When I believe you've done enough damage I'll stop it and you'll win. You lose if you take too many hits. Any questions?"

"No, seonsaeng."

Viole walked away from the pillar where Ha Jinsung stood – leaning against it and watching. The golem itself whirled to life the moment he got in range. Viole sent shinsoo bubbling out of his baang, to circulate through his body, to flow, to ebb.

The golem swiped.

Viole ducked, throwing a hook into its knee.

His fist smacked into the rock with a flash and bang of sound, but when the smoke cleared not even a scratch could be seen on it. The golem rose its knee to kick him and Viole spun out of the way, getting behind the golem. He felt that same sensation as before when he fought the Bull, that energy coursing up his arm then darting out – splashing against the golem's back. Outside of some singed marks it didn't look as if it did much damage but the sound the golem made next proved otherwise. It groaned out, a sound of rumbling boulders, and twisted its shoulders to strike at him. Viole dodged, once again stopping in front of it.

As Viole looked on, the damage he had done to its knee vanished. Its back also reshaped and shifted around. _As long as that core remains it'll keep coming after me,_ Viole thought, _it animates…of course._

The golem went after him again, but Viole twisted out of the way and shot a hand up – slapping the core on its shiny blue surface. The moment he touched it he resonated the shinsoo in and around it, creating a vibration that blew through the golem entirely. The backlash happened immediately and Viole had just enough time to circulate the flow, feeling the power course through him before vanishing.

A trickle of blood still clung to his lip.

Ha Jinsung stepped over the new pile of rubble that had once been the golem before bending down to pick something up from the field of earth. As Viole neared he saw that it was the core – the blue circle that made up the heart of it completely blown out and blackened. "Good work," he said as Viole approached. "I saw that you didn't use martial arts for one of your strikes."

He winced, "That … wasn't intentional."

"No, it was good. Interspersing shinsoo blasts with your martial arts is a privilege for powerhouses. Wave Controller isn't my primary position but I can teach you some basics. How much did you learn in your position class?"

Baam glanced over to the side. "You know, the basics."

And Ha Jinsung's smile died. "How do you make use of the Flare Wave Explosion? What are the steps?"

"I … uh."

The man sighed, shoulders slumping, "You don't know, do you? You do it all by instinct."

"I mean, that's – "

"Alright. I'll teach you."

Just like that, his stutter, his uncertainty, it all fell aside as Viole locked his gaze on the Ranker. He took a breath then took a seat, taking a seiza, sitting on the back of his legs. Ha Jingsung took a seat opposite of him, sitting crossed-legged on a rock.

"We'll start with the basic of the basics. There are three aspects involved when you manipulate shinsoo. The basic unit of shinsoo manipulation, Baang, the size of the Baang, Myun, and the density of the Baang, Soo. While the general rule of thumb is the more Baangs the better having larger Baangs which you can fit more shinsoo inside of is also beneficial."

"I knew all of that already," _Well, heard of it._

"Then what do you know of Flow Control and Reverse Flow Control techniques?"

This he could answer. "Shinsoo exists inside of us as it does in the rest of the world. It has an inherent flow that circulates power throughout the body. Controlling the flow inside of you is called Flow Control and forcing an opponent's flow to change is called Reverse Flow Control".

"Yes, and the Flare Wave Explosion is a technique that makes use of both controls simultaneously."

"I thought you could only make use of one technique at a time."

"No, you can combine techniques. It's difficult but doable. The Wave Explosion requires for you to make physical contact with an enemy, they you vibrate their shinsoo in their body creating an explosion. This creates a backlash on the user so you must use Flow Control to nullify the aftermath. Done correctly it will leave destruction in your wave but you, yourself, untouched. It's FUG signature technique."

"I see," he said.

"You sound unsure. We can – "

"No, I don't need an overview or anything. It just seems that the Flare Wave Explosion technique can get fairly … bloody."

That made the man snort a laugh. "Most techniques are. Take Body Reinforcement. Your right in that each living organism has its own internal flow of shinsoo. You can manipulate the flow to heal … but you can also accelerate it to such a degree that it exceeds their limit and pops them like a water balloon." Viole's eyes widened, but his mind went blank at the man's next words, "Eurasia Blossom, the head of the Eurasia family, once proved this could be done by accelerating the shinsoo in a Floor and killing 99% of its population."

Baam jumped to his feet. "What?" He exclaimed, "Why!"

"Who knows? Maybe she did it for sport."

"I don't believe it. There has to be a reason."

"There likely is. I don't know much of what happened outside of the rumors. Would that excuse it?"

Baam glanced down, eyes falling half closed, the floor of the circular chamber becoming a brown-grey blur. He didn't know. He just –

He heard the sigh a second before he felt Ha Jinsung flop a hand onto his head, "Think about it some more later, alright, 'Ole?"

Viole must have agreed but he didn't hear the words.

…

Later that night Viole lay in the bed, staring up at the ceiling, unable to go asleep. The Eurasia family destroying a branch family and Blossom Eurasia killing a whole Floor, which were the size of _continents_ , Hendo Bloodmadder stealing the lifespans of his children and their children, Jinsung and the woman he had loved and how she had been enslaved.

But then Ha Jinsung's question sounded in his mind, with its meaning twisted.

 _Would that excuse it?_ He had asked.

 _ **Would that excuse what FUG had done?**_

Viole flung the sheets to the side before easing himself to his feet. A window hung on one of the side walls of the room. He walked to it. He looked. A vast reservoir of water, part of the testing arena from before, lay on the other side of the glass – so that he could look into it. Dozens, hundreds, of fish shinhueh swam in the water – climbing ever higher. Up above, Viole could make out the distorted reflection of the moon … of the Light Ball … that glimmered with a pale light.

Once more words came to him unbidden, his, from another time, when Viole still went by another name.

 _But not to me. If Rachel isn't there, that place is nothing more than a pile of garbage. No matter what's up there, it won't change. You told me that a being like I am is strange, but to me, you are a person that can't even find a single thing that's precious within that huge pile of garbage. I don't care what others say. I will climb the Tower. And if all of you aren't a bunch of liars, you better prepare what I want up there._

"Can't go to sleep?"

He turned around to see Hwa Ryun leaning against the doorframe. She must have opened the door as he was lost in his thoughts. He nodded at the eyepatched Guide. "Did you want something?"

"Just wanted to tell you that I'd be gone for the next few days we'll have to continue our lessons after."

 _Why let me know? You always seem to go where you want, when you want. It wouldn't be the first time you vanished on me._ But instead he just smiled, a soft smile, "Thanks."

"So, what were you thinking of?"

He could have said nothing, he could have lied, and a part of Viole still did want to, but the words came out as he looked at her. "I've made a decision," he said, then nodding, he said it again, "I've made a decision."

"And?"

"I'm going to climb the Tower. Not for FUG and their wishes but for myself."

"For yourself or for her?"

"Both."


	3. Chapter 3

Baam woke up staring at the alabaster ceiling. For a moment, he did not realize where he was. The sight all around him and the softness of the sheets, so different than that rocky floor he knew, disoriented him – stirred in Baam a heavy sense of _wrongness._

Then he remembered.

Baam groaned and rolled over.

After a quick shower, Baam got dressed and stepped out of the room and into the corridor. The stark difference between the sterilized furnished room and the dirty tunnel and cave was still startling even after a week.

When he entered the circular chamber, Viole found himself alone. He remembered Hwa Ryun's warning of her departure last night and felt his hands twitch – curling into fists. _Am I alone again?_

Then Ha Jiinsung came out from the main hallway, scratching his head and yawning, "Morning 'Ole."

He released his fist, tension leaving.

"Seonsaeng."

"We'll have a quick session before I head off."

And he froze again, "Head off?"

"Did Hwa Ryun not tell you? The two of us are going to be gone for the week."

Viole opened his mouth, then shut it. "Alright," he said at last, "What do I do until then?"

"Until then," he said as he flung three cores out, golems began to rise – rocks and rubble condensing around them, "You'll practice."

The golems went up faster than before. The rocks coalescing around them in moments. Viole would have thought it was Ha Jinsung's handiwork, but he seemed just as surprised. Then it was gone, "Begin," he said.

Viole took the back stance once more, specifically the Ha Style: Weightless Crane, a form made for the explosive power inherent in Has. Viole didn't have that same power, but –

A golem struck.

Viole dived out of the way, springing up into a spinning roundhouse. The shinsoo reinforced limb crashing into its flank. "Nice one!" he distantly heard the shout, but he was distracted by the golem he sensed coming from behind. _How can they be so sneaky?_ He screamed in his head just as he jumped to the side – it's fist cratered the ground where he once stood.

"I guess I'll be heading off."

"What?" Viole asked – distracted. One of the golems took the opportunity to attack, forcing him to throw a block up. He skidded back a few feet. "Already?"

"Yep!" Ha Jinsung piped up.

Viole dodged another blow by vaulting over a golem. As he passed he brushed a hand against the core – he felt the Flare Wave Explosion technique course up his arm and into the blue sphere. When Viole landed on the other side the golem crumbled into dust. "Good luck … I guess."

"Don't need it."

The other two golems did not go down so easy. Whenever Viole tried land a hit with FUG's signature move the constructs would dodge or move out of the way, even blocking the cores when they could. They … they had intelligence. Just like how that one had tried to sneak up on him. They were hard enough to handle when they were just incredibly durable.

He moved and moved and moved, landing hits that left no true scars. _I need to be faster._ A truth that grew slowly but then just rang with clarity in him as he dodged and weaved. Yes, he had to be faster. If he was fast enough he could land a hit with the Flare Wave Explosion but … how? The answer came quickly – reinforcement. If he could reinforce his arms, why not his legs? Viole sent shinsoo flowing through his legs, then tried to jump to the side.

He stumbled.

One of the golems punched him in the gut.

It flung him across the chamber. Viole landed in a heap.

He forced himself to his feet. As the two golems shambled over to him, Viole's mind worked in overdrive. All of his current abilities were the product of replication. Once they were done to him he simply _knew_ how to do it. This may well be the first time he learned an ability the hard way … he wasn't even sure this _was_ an ability.

But he had to try it again.

Viole walked then ran, closing the distance as he sent shinsoo coursing through his body, felt power and energy pool around his legs. The golem in front reared back an arm, ready to cave Viole's face in, but before it could strike the boy just vanished.

He reappeared behind it, right in front of the second golem. He reappeared in a flash of afterimages. Viole punched, fist hitting the core, then going through it. The golem collapsed in a spray of vibrating rock and rubble. As he landed, Viole used Flow Control on himself, negating the aftershock and leaving him sound and whole in the remains of the training golem. The last remaining enemy turned on him, raising both arms up to slam them into him.

And it stopped.

Just one look was all it took, Viole used Fast Skip on it, arresting its movements there and then. He walked up, breathed out a sigh, and closed his eyes. _I need to form two baangs to attack._ He could feel it, the power slithering about his chest, unformed and untouched. _This won't be the same._ His control over the golem, over the technique, weakened – slackened. It's arms once began to move. _It_ _ **won't.**_

It froze again.

Viole's arm darted out.

The third crumbled.

In the field of rock around him, Viole gasped for breath. That's when he heard it.

Clap. Clap. Clap.

Viole glanced up the moment he heard the sound, and saw Yu Han Sung there. He clapped slowly, and after the third clap he let his hands fall, clasped behind his back. "A decent performance," he said, "for a Regular."

"What do you want?"

"Just you. How impolite. No Yu Han Sung-ssi for me?"

Viole stared.

"Very well," he said, "I came to evaluate your progress. As I said, it's adequate for a Regular. But we aren't looking for a Regular. Even with your speed for acquiring new skills and your new passenger you still lack the needed strength to kill Zahard for several years yet."

Just hearing about it caused a stab of pain to slam into him, more than that, it caused … something … to squirm, thrashing about in his chest. Viole grind his teeth together, working through the pain so one clear thought came to him.

 _I have no interest in killing Zahard._

"What do you want?" He repeated.

"Your body, your time, your blood, your sweat." After each item on the list, Yu Han Sung took a step closer. By the end of it he had stepped fully into the training chamber. "While Ha Jinsung is gone I will oversee your training."

 _I have no interest in giving you any of that, either._ But instead he said, "Ha Jinsung-ssi will teach me."

"I am not questioning his skills as a martial artist. But your primary position isn't as a Fisherman, but a Wave Controller. Physical exertion is your weakness and he's been shoring it up. Shinsoo manipulation is your strength. You must play to your strengths in order to pass tests. You do want to pass, correct?"

 _I have no other choice._ "Of course."

He beamed. Viole was used to Ha Jinsung's slight smiles or Hwa Ryun's smirks, so something just off about the Ranker's expression. Once more Viole sighed, then reached for the fallen cores.

"Those won't be necessary."

He stopped. He stared at the man. His smile never left his face.

 _He wouldn't._

He would.

Three baangs appeared above his head. Two baangs appeared above Viole's – one certain, secure, the other wavering, but both sent out a blast of shinsoo that met Yu Han Sung's in the middle. For the third, he dodged – jumping to the side.

Right into a trap.

Right before Viole's eyes was an orb of shinsoo, a ball of compressed energy. He barely even had time to move when it exploded outwards in a flash of blue light that washed over him. It should have hurt, he knew, but slamming into the far wall after it flung him hurt more. It was as if all the energy from the attack had just soaked into him.

Viole got up from the ground, ready to move, but then stopped. Just – stopped. Mind and body halting.

Yu Han Sung still stood where he did before, hands clasped behind his back, but around him hovered dozens of those balls of shinsoo, clinging to the floor of the cave. They had been there all along.

He took his hands out from behind his back, held them up, and ignited them – wreathing his hands in bright blue energy that twisted and curled about his fingers. Above his head yet another baang joined the first three, "I call this the Straight-Line Long Pierce. Try not to die."

The four baangs glowed then a single beam shot out – like a long, smooth cylinder of vibrant blue. Viole poured all the shinsoo he had available into one baang, dramatically buffing up the soo in the baang. As the beam shot out he threw all his strength into halting it there and then.

It didn't even slow down.

He scooped up one of the cores off the ground and flung it into the air, like before rocks began gathering about it rapidly, a half-formed golem being created. Then the beam blasted a hole through its chest, disintegrating the core. But by that time Viole was gone.

It was too dangerous too step anywhere within the chamber itself but the ceiling and walls were free of those bombs. After throwing out the core he jumped up, reinforcing his fingers so they dug into the rock ceiling. But it was not enough. Viole's eyes widened as another beam shot out, right after the first, aimed right where he jumped up to – Yu Han Sung had predicted exactly what he would do. Viole released the Reinforcement, hoping to dodge the second blast by falling, but he did not fall fast enough to avoid it.

That blast from before should have hurt. This _did._ The whole world went white and as the blast impacted his chest he felt pain spread out – creeping up his limbs. He didn't even feel the ground when he thud against it. The world titled afterwards, as Viole lay in a pool of his own blood, it faded and blurred. Through the haze of his consciousness he saw the globes of blue wink out of existence as Yu Han Sung approached, hands still clasped behind him. Viole could not make out his words, though the man said something.

He sent shinsoo swirling through his body, trying to use the same technique that Jinsu used. But no matter how hard he tried Viole couldn't – he felt the power circulate, but his wounds refused to heal. He continued to look at Yu Han Sung, his words, even though the pain, became clear to him, "Is this all?" The man asked.

Viole tried to struggle to his feet, but could only sit up.

"This is the end, I suppose."

At that moment, a blur flickered into being between the two. Ha Jinsung now stood there. The look on his face reminded Viole of that anger that Jiggu held – that one that contorted the face and lit the eyes aflame. That slight smile was gone, replaced by a frown that seemed etched on him – natural.

"What" His seonsaeng started, biting out every word, "are you doing?"

"You've come back."

"Answer the damn question."

"Training."

"Like hell that was. Besides, _I'm_ his instructor."

"The Elders have determined that his growth his not adequate. I shall be taking over his Shinsoo studies."

Viole probably should have interjected then, but his head was too foggy.

"No, you won't. We'll handle that."

…Who is we?

"If extra training will not be done, you know the alternative."

Ha Jinsung looked like he wanted to say something to that, but a silence stretched instead.

The other man sighed, clasping his hands behind his back, "I think I need a cup of coffee."

And he was gone.

Not left down the main tunnel gone, but vanished into thin air gone. One moment Yu Han Sung was there and the next he had just disappeared. Viole remained tensed for a moment later, but when he saw Ha Jinsung relax he too sighed.

The sound seemed to alert Jinsung. The man turned around, he glanced up and down Viole's form, then said, "You're a mess."

 _I seem to be getting that a lot_. "I can't use Jinsu's technique."

"Hm. Maybe it's too advanced for you? That new source of power can do it."

Viole closed his eyes. Before, he had used Flow Control on himself, sending the shinsoo swirling through his body, this time he focused his attention on his chest – onto that spot where pain had twisted through him. He pushed and pulled it like he had for his own shinsoo, and he felt his wounds fade.

To Ha Jinsung looking on, he saw a red exoskeleton emerge out of Viole's back, the ribs curling around his arms. For a moment, just a moment, a long narrow Needle appeared in the boy's hand, but when he opened his eyes the power had vanished just as the wounds had.

But the man stayed silent.

"…What is it?"

"Well, as you know, Hwa Ryun and I were supposed to go on that mission. I was thinking of taking you with us."

 _That_ caused Viole to jerk his head around.

"Why?"

"We're done here. It's no longer safe for you to stick around. So might as well come with us now rather than later."

It's no longer safe … he's talking about Yu Han Sung, isn't he? There was a tension there between them that Viole couldn't begin to understand. Many things within FUG were still mysteries to him. He'd let it be – for now.

"…So what are you going to do?"

"We're actually going to secure the next safe house. The Guide will lead the way."

"Secure? From who?"

He didn't answer that one, instead just getting away from where Viole sat and walked towards a far wall. Viole slid back onto his feet, and started heading towards him, but then he paused for a moment, glancing over to the tunnel that led to the room, then he left it behind.

When he looked back anew tunnel, slopping upwards, seemed to have just appeared in the back of the chamber. Hwa Ryun waited on the other side, nodding at them. Perhaps it was like that illusionary barrier that Hwa Ryun pushed him through days ago? The path is there one moment then gone the next?

For her part, Hwa Ryun smiled when she saw him … or at least Viole thought it was a smile. A twitch to her lips. "I see you're joining us," she said. Ha Jinsung took the lead, a few steps ahead of them. He thought it would be quiet on the trip up, but the redhead Guide had not finished, "This will be a good opportunity for you."

 _Don't take the bait. Don't –_ "In what way?"

"You'll see firsthand how FUG operates. How your seonsang-nim does."

The image of that list, with its scribbles and arrows, came to mind, "I know."

"Do you?"


	4. Chapter 4

Baam, when he stepped out of the tunnel and into the light, felt as if he had stepped into another world again.

All around him stretched fields of bright, vivid green – in the distance he could spot a tree line, the leaves and branches swaying in the breeze. Up above, clouds hugged the sky – or as close to clouds and skies he had ever seen within the Tower. He took a breath, feeling the fresh air fill up his lungs.

"Enjoying the gong?"

"The what?"

"The gong, the shinsoo."

"You mean air, right? Why not – "

He cut it off then and there. Baam could feel both their eyes on him, taking him in. His mindset shifted, settling as Viole's eyes narrowed, "What is it?"

"There's no air in the Tower."

"But we're breathing – "

"That's not air. That's gong, the shinsoo in the empty space around us."

Viole fell quiet at that, mind whirling. Even after three months there was still so much about the Tower that he just didn't know. Jinsung seemed to agree, as he glanced over to where Hwa Ryun stood, "Will you take this up in your lessons too?"

"Of course."

They walked in silence. Viole tried to just enjoy the sights around him, enjoy his freedom from underground, but it just didn't have the same lightness as before. He kicked at the ground, scraping his heel through the dirt and grass.

"There's shinsoo in that too."

And he stopped.

Hwa Ryun stood by his side, same as before. Same as before, except, yes – she was smiling, a Cheshire grin that overcame her smirk. Viole wondered if she enjoyed making a fool out of him – telling him things he didn't know. Her smile widened, "Should we have a lesson now?"

"Sure."

She held up a finger as she took a step, "So you know of Flow Control and Reverse Flow Control, but shinsoo does not exist solely inside living beings. It's in the empty space all around us, it's condensed into the waters of the sea, there's pockets of it infused throughout the earth."

"Infused?"

"Yes, to the best of anyone's knowledge when you strip away all the shinsoo the Floors are just made of rock. Rock ceilings, rock walls, rock floors. Shinsoo exists not only inside but all around. When in low concentrations it forms a gas that makes up the atmosphere and "sky", when in high concentrations it becomes a liquid to make the seas."

"If there's so much shinsoo all around us, then why not use it?"

"Shinhueh do. They live their entire lives within shinsoo and have adapted to it. There are shinhueh who swim through the sea, and shinhueh that swim through the gong. But yes, I see your point." She evaluated him at that, even before then, eyeing Viole before she said, "Well, there is one person who is said to manipulate shinsoo that way."

"Who?"

"Baek Ryun. The current head of Wolkaiksong,"

Viole blinked at that, he opened his mouth once, then twice, but had to say it, "Who?"

She had said back then that patience was out of character for her, but Viole did not see it. She inclined her head, then said, "You have at least heard of Urek Mazino, haven't you?"

Viole looked at her, all movement stopped. Ha Jinsung must still be walking up ahead, but that name arrested him completely. "The Irregular," he said, "How – "

"Baek Ryun is the best friend of Urek Mazino, the two of them founded Wolkhaiksong – Wing Tree, which is an organization devoted to finding a way out of the Tower. No one really knows where Baek Ryun came from. He was an orphan from the Middle Area that found his way to a forest and lived there for many years – discovering how to use shinsoo on his own. That alone wouldn't be too noteworthy, he could well be a child from the Ten Families, but it is said that the forest has an odd aura about it and he was able to use the ambient shinsoo to empower himself. It's one of the reasons why Urek visited the forest in the first place."

"Okay," Viole said – taking it in, "So no one besides Baek Ryun has ever used shinsoo in their surroundings?"

"Not that anyone's aware of, but then again, who knows with Zahard and the other Irregulars?" At that, she paused, a sudden look of surprise taking over her face – after all this time it felt foreign to see that on the face of the young redheaded Guide … but then the shock faded as a smile, a _grin_ , stole onto her face. "In fact," she said, "I think that is likely, after all you already showed the ability once."

Again, Viole felt the urge not to give into her bait, but he knew a losing battle when he saw one, "What do you mean?"

Even then, he had not been expecting her next action. Hwa Ryun tapped her jeweled eyepatch once, twice, and said, "Remember this?"

Viole took a step back. The gouging of her eye had been an unmentioned fact that hung between them for the last few weeks – suddenly bringing it up threw him more than a little. "That's." He started, but couldn't find the words.

Once again, she did.

"That's the wound I got back in the Crown Game. Back then, you had not formed a contract with the Guardian. In fact, you didn't even know what shinsoo was, but still, you manipulated it. You manipulated the ambient gong without a baang. It seemed alive."

"That's…I'm sorry. I didn't mean – "

"Relax, Viole. I happen to like the eyepatch now."

"Now?" He asked, but she didn't answer. They had crested a small, sloping hill and with it a ruin still off in the distance came in sight – each pillar cracked and some had fallen to the ground. She left him with not even a word thrown his way, leaving Viole thrown off guard once again.

"What's going on?" He asked Ha Jinsung as the Ranker walked up.

Ha Jinsung still had his eyes on Hwa Ryun as she headed towards the ruins. "She's found a path up for us." The Ranker nodded his head at her, "Come on, let's follow her."

As the two neared, he found himself looking up to Ha Jinsung. "Who's Karaka?" He asked again, though it was less of a question than it was last time. For his part, the sudden question seemed to surprise Ha Jinsung, but Viole pressed on, "I'm not letting it go this time – He and Yu Han Sung must be related somehow."

The Ranker sighed, "He's a Slayer," he started, "Slayer number 5. I trained him back when he was a freshly-minted Ranker."

"How does that relate to Yu Han Sung?"

"While FUG is run by Grace and the Slayers, there is a Council of Elders that oversees its day to day functions. He was the youngest member in generations before Yu Han Sung showed up."

 _And what does that have to do with me? Why is it no longer safe in the cave?_ But Ha Jinsung didn't let him ask that, instead he nodded over to the ruins and said, "Look."

So Viole looked.

Hwa Ryun weaved her way through the pillars, eyeing different parts of the ruins. This close, Viole could see that a circular stone tableau sat in the middle of the ruins and the pillars ringed around it. As Hwa Ryun made her way through it, her staff hovered by her hand – it tapped different rocks then suddenly swung out – smacking against one of the pillars.

"What are you doing?"

He saw a section of the pillar sudden press in.

A light shone out in the circle – swirling and growing, spiraling in on itself.

Hwa Ryun just stepped into the light and vanished.

"Come on," Ha Jinsung said, grabbing his shoulder. "After you."

 _Is he worried I'll try to run – even after all of this?_

` Viole stepped into the circle.

…..

When he reappeared, Viole found himself in a very different place. Mountainous terrain surrounded him, covered in moss, grass, and trees. He could see the edge where the rocks sharply descended into jagged cliff faces. Off in the distance he could spot a Tower looming, rising so high it seemed to pierce the sky…the roof…itself.

"Where are we?"

"The Middle Area," Viole turned around to see Ha JInsung standing there – he had not been there mere moments before. "Right at the very edge where the Middle Area touches the Inner Tower. Our new stronghold should be close by."

They do not take long to traverse the crags – having been deposited near their location. The stronghold looked like a long white spire – from a distance nearly merging with the jagged rocks that make the cliffs.

The trio stopped on a ledge, hiding behind some rock outcroppings. Viole formed a baang and sent shinsoo to his eyes. He felt an odd sensation as his gaze honed in on them and spotted people patrolling the walls. Needles at their hips and Spears, rifles and bows strapped to their backs.

"Who are they?"

"Bandits," Ha Jinsung said, "Their leader is a Ranker, but the fact he's not on the upper Floors, not even as a Royal Guard, is telling. Still, I'll deal with him while you two deal with everyone else."

 _The_ _ **rest**_ _of the compound, you mean?_

With that, Ha Jinsung just vanished, like Yu Han Sung had hours before. Either he used a technique or he moved so fast that Viole, even with his Reinforced eyes, could not track him. He didn't know which was more frightening.

 _The power of a Ranker._

Then they, Viole and Hwa Ryun, crept up to the high spire walls – darting from rock to rock. When they reached the base of the wall the Guide gave him a quick nod then leaped up. Viole just had enough time to hear shouts of shock and panic as he jumped up after her.

Viole landed in a whirlwind of action and combat. Three Needles stabbed at him the moment he landed. He sidestepped out of the way of one, jumped over the other, then phased away from the third – sending shinsoo coursing to his legs.

He reappeared behind one of the bandits. He twisted the man's arm behind him, pressing it upward against his back. Another one of the bandits, a sharkman Viole noted from this close up, moved to swipe at him. Viole outstretched a palm.

The sharkman barely had time to yell out "Shinsoo!" before the dark blue blast, tinged with black, hit him, throwing him backwards into the third combatant. They both were blasted across the wall, where on the far corner a guard tower, rectangular and blocky, overlooked the crags below.

The third opponent, the one whose arm had been twisted, took that chance to break out of the hold and jump back. His scarred face broke into a sneer as he reached behind his back for his Spear.

Then he froze.

He stood poised, hand reaching for the Spear on his back, and stayed held in place like that as Viole walked by. The boy stopped. The second half of the wall stretched before him – the site of Hwa Ryun's combat. It held the remnants of her short struggle – the carved slice that cut into the cement floor and snaked its way to a section of the stone railing that had been blown apart as one of the guards had been knocked off the ledge, and her second opponent which she had sent flying across the wall with a whack from her staff – leaving the bandit to smack into the guard tower before falling in a heap next to Viole's downed foes. The crater in the wall and the huge splattering of blood told Viole that the strike was undoubtedly lethal.

And, above all the wreckage, Hwa Ryun hovered – crouched on top of her staff like a gargoyle.

Viole approached underneath her, looking up.

"You did all of this?"

"Yes. My Mjollnar does a lot of collateral damage."

At first, Baam had come because he felt disturbed by the destruction. The lethal violence breaking through his veneer of a Slayer candidate, but that left him curious. "Your what?" he asked.

"Mjollnar," she said, tapping the staff underneath her, "It's a Wand, like the one Rozéal had. You can use shinsoo through it."

"Really?"

"I had to be put into the Wave Controller position class for some reason."

 _I guess that makes sense._ "So can you use shinsoo through it?"

Her eyes became half-lidded at that, gazing down at him. For a moment, her smile slipped as she spoke softly, "On a higher Floor."

No use at the moment, then. "Should we go on?"

"Sure. I just need to take care of something." With that, she hopped down from her staff … her Wand, Mjollnar, and walked past him. Viole turned around, wondering what she was doing, and then his previous concerns swarmed back to him as she lifted her Wand and sent it speeding to the frozen bandit's head.

And it too slowed. It should have stopped completely but Viole's second baang wavered and flickered above his head. Still, Hwa Ryun stopped herself at that and eyed him. "What is it?" she asked.

"You can't just kill him! He's frozen! Defenseless!"

"You do realize that you'll have to maintain the baang to keep him frozen for the rest of the fight, right? You'll be forced to clear the stronghold with only one half-formed baang."

Viole felt his mind, his entire being, harden. His eyes narrowed as he glared at the girl, stepping between her and the frozen bandit. "So be it," he said.

She looked at him for a moment before that same smirksmile grew on her face. Mjollnar spun away from the man's head to hang at her side. "Those are good eyes, my god."

He groaned at that, then turned his back to her. "I'll check the guard tower," he said before heading to the door on the far side.

After taking a few steps, he realized he didn't hear footsteps following him and cranked his head around. There Hwa Ryun still stood, gazing up in the whitewashed sky above, with its bright blue and rolling clouds. For a moment, Viole wondered if that's how he looked when he paused to look up at the stars – lost in thoughts of earlier days.

He almost said what are you thinking of? But it wasn't even a thought, just an urge.

"Are you coming?"

"I am. After you."

…

AN: A couple of things. First, for returning readers you may want to go back and reread the previous chapters. I did some revisions to both better fit in with the canon and for future plot points I have in mind. Essentially, I realized that all three canon flashbacks we've been given are back to back with each other. After Yu Han Sung leaves he passes Ha Jinsung who then introduces himself to Baam, after Ha Jinsung realized that Baam learned the Flare Wave Explosion instantaneously he asked if Baam wanted to become a god. So taken that into account the new order is Chapter 1 - Ultimatum - Jinsung Intro -Fake Thorn - Chapter 2. Second, I've also thought up of a couple of new theories that I will probably present elsewhere. You can find them on


	5. Chapter 5

It didn't take long for the two of them to reach the guard tower in the corner. Ignoring the two unconscious (and not so unconscious) bodies by the side wall, Viole tried the handle. Tried because it barely even twisted. He turned around to ask Hwa Ryun what they should do next, but the redhead just mouthed the words 'Reinforcement' at him.

 _Of course, I knew that._

Viole reached for the handle again, but this time he sent shinsoo flowing through his hands and fingertips, then squeezed, the metal deforming and denting at his touch. Once he pried the handle off of the door Viole pushed it aside.

Just in time to fling himself out of the way as a Spear darted through the space his head had been in.

Three men stood in the midst of the room, a table with a game of cards in the midst of them. The one in the far back, short and squat and muscular, had just thrown the spear, and, with a flip of his wrist, it rematerialized in his hands though it must have gone over the wall before.

"A Wand!" Hwa Ryun said, "I have this!"

With that, she jumped at the man. The two before her, also sharkmen stabbed at her with Needles slicing through the gong, the shinsoo rippling as it was parted.

Viole formed a baang, filled it with shinsoo, then felt a ball coalesce in the palm of his hand. He flung it. It exploded out in a stream of light, throwing one of the bandits into the wall. The other stabbed through the space Hwa Ryun had been in but she dodged it by jumping into the air and springing off of Mjollnar to strike at the bandit with the Wand. He held up his Spear at the last moment, where they hit sparks flew, landed on the table, and set it on fire.

 _It really does cause a lot of collateral damage,_ Viole had time to think before raising his arms in a guard. The Needle hit his arms then bounced off – like striking metal. Viole saw the bandit's eyes widen before he closed in. A strike to the jaw and then a toss over the shoulder sent the sharkman flying into the burning table.

For her part, Hwa Ryun still wailed on the last short bandit, Mjollnar spinning about her as she attacked. The bandit blocked each strike but they still caused yet more sparks and carved up the floors and walls. Viole charged then slammed his shoulder into the man – the man never saw him coming.

After he had been slammed against the wall, Viole stood back up and looked at Hwa Ryun. For her part, she let her staff fall back to her side, "I had that under control."

"Sure."

Just like that she moved, Mjollnar swinging at his head. Viole ducked. The Wand soared overhead. Then smacked against something, the sound loud to his ears, followed by a scream of pain. Viole straightened and looked behind him just in time to see the sharkman fall back into the flames.

"Like I said. I could have handled it."

"And I believe you."

She smirked then waved a hand. The fire extinguished, puffed out with a gust of wind. With that, she nodded and headed towards the open doorway. Viole took one spare moment to glance about the room, to the bandit smacked against the wall, blasted into the corner and laying on top of the rubble of the table. He glanced over the mayhem and curled his hands into fists.

Then he stepped outside.

For a moment he thought the redheaded Guide had vanished. The stretch of stone-cut wall lay empty and bare all the way up to the next guard tower in the corner, but then he spotted her. There, off to the side, a staircase wound its way down to a courtyard below. She was already making her way down it.

"Aren't we going to check out the last two walls?" Viole asked when he caught up.

"No, that won't be necessary."

He almost said more, but then fell silent, glancing back to the guard tower.

"They don't deserve pity."

"What?" He asked as Hwa Ryun stepped off the stairs and onto the grassy lawn of the courtyard. She could have passed in deeper, past the trees and shrubbery, but instead she stopped and looked back at him.

"Do you know how we found this place? In the Middle Area there are several cities. There's vast distances between each city so there's a caravan service to ferry people from city to city. But for those who can't afford it they go themselves – these are the people that these bandits targeted. The poor, the destitute. They steal everything, slaughter everyone, save the women and children – them they sell to slave markets that have been built around the cities."

Viole froze at that, the words washing over him, his mouth opening then closing.

"Those are the people you fought."

…..

The two crossed the courtyard. The courtyard itself was not all that big, besides benches in the corner, it was bare save for the greenery all around. They stood in front of a large iron door, about a head taller than they, and, with a single push, it swung open.

A long, narrow throne room stretched out before him, and it would have looked impressive to Viole with its velvet curtains over stained glass windows, elaborate chairs lined in rows, and it's golden, gleaming throne, if it were not for the bodies. Hacked apart bodies littered the throne room and blood splattered against the tiled floor, but there, at the front of the room by the throne, stood Ha Jinsung and a man on his knees. His seonsaeng had a vice grip on the man's neck.

Viole jumped forward, "Wait!"

Jinsung paused, "What's going on?"

"This is Ren Tetsuga, ranked 3231, Bandit King, rather grandiose isn't it? Especially since he's not even a High Ranker."

"And them?" Viole asked, though he didn't look at the dead bodies.

"Those were his Ten Generals. Anyway, this is gonna get a tad messy 'Ole, how about you step outside?"

Ren reacted, trying to pull away, but Ha Jinsung just squeezed, causing bloody grooves to appear on the man's neck. "You see, I told you not to move."

"No," Viole cut in with a certain amount of certainty, "Leave him be."

"I can't do that. He knows where our new base is located – I can't let him live."

"Then let's just make him forget! Shinsoo can do anything right? Then what about a memory wipe technique?"

"Maybe Zahard or the Ten Warriors have such a convenient technique but we are not so lucky."

"Then just let him walk, make him promise to never speak!"

A beat of silence came over them then, it washed over the throne room, it lapsed in the moment it took for Ha Jinsung's eyes to hone in on him.

"No."

And then Jinsung squeezed.

He cut a slice of flesh out of the man's neck, just like Viole had to the door handle on the door to the guard tower, the bone pliable to Reinforced fingers. A snap, a crunch, sounded and then the body thumped to the ground, blood already pooling all around it.

Only Ha Jinsung, Viole and Hwa Ryun stood in this hall of the dead.


	6. Chapter 6

Viole stepped out of the throne room.

He stepped out of the throne room and into the courtyard. Surrounded on all sides by greenery, the leaves gently swaying in the breeze, the grass pressed underfoot with each step he took, this slice of nature seemed so different, so starkly different than –

He cut the thoughts off, hands curling into fists, shoulders shaking.

The images flashed through his mind, one after another. Body after body.

When the door behind him opened once more Viole burst into motion.

"Wait." He heard Hwa Ryun call out, not a true shout really, but already her voice faded as he sprinted to the stairway on the right and bounded up it. It was the other set of stairs compared to the ones he took before but they were closer, and all Viole cared about at the moment was getting back to the wall.

Getting back to that scarred-face bandit that he froze.

He reached the top of the stairs then stopped.

Devastation lay about him.

Red against white. Blood coated the stone, it coated every inch of it, as if pasted on. Bits of flesh and skin lay scattered about. The scent of blood – that tinge of iron wafted all about him, stabbing into his head, making Viole's insides squirm. They knotted tighter and tighter as he looked on the scene. Then his gaze turned to the steel railing on the edge of the wall, the one that separated the compound from the world outside.

A piece of intestines hung on it – looped over it like a belt on a hanger.

Viole bent over and hurled.

For a moment he just stood there, bent over and panting, but then he straightened up – staring out into the sky. The scene of the throne room once again rose in his mind's eye, melding with this scene, Viole felt a scream bubble up in his chest – just waiting to be released, but instead he sighed.

"Ha Jinsung did all of this," he said.

It was not a question, but she answered it anyway, "He did." Viole turned around to see Hwa Ryun at the top of the stairs. "In the time it took us to clear a single wall and that tower he killed them while on his way to the Ranker. As quick as thought."

"The rest is like this too, isn't it? The other three walls, the guard towers," Viole said, gesturing to the other end, "It's like what he said about Eurasia Blossom – he just rose up the shinsoo in them and made them … _pop_." He practically snarled out the word. "And _you_ ," he said, pointing at her, "You knew about this. It's the reason why you said we didn't need to clear the rest of the compound."

"And?"

Viole opened his mouth, the anger once again bubbling up, he wanted to blame her, be angry at her, but the fire began to die out. Hwa Ryun did not kill those men, did not splatter the walls and floors with that blood, the fire snuffed out as he sighed.

Viole spun on his heel and walked, leaving footprints through the red.

Silence descended as they walked on – to the guard tower in the corner then through the door on the other end. He had to go through it all. He just … had to see it. See the blood pools as they stained the ground, see the now empty watchtower, see the stretch of stone on the other side – that contrast between red and white.

"He could be gone, you know."

Until she spoke up Viole hadn't realized that Hwa Ryun walked behind him every step of the way.

Until she spoke up Viole had forgotten that he still looked for that last bandit – the one he froze with Fast Skip.

A beat, then an answer, "…I thought I didn't need to physically be there for the Fast Skip technique – that it continues to manipulate the target even after you leave."

"Ah, yes, but the technique could have just ended on its own. It is the first time you'll be using that technique over a prolonged period of time, after all."

They had reached the other side of the room, where the door stood ajar, but Viole did not cross it to exit the room, but just looked at the redheaded Guide.

For her part, Hwa Ryun just walked up, that smirksmile in place.

"Wouldn't that be something?"

He ran.

…..

She was right.

Of course she was.

He made it back to the original wall they entered on, pass more seas of blood, past the guard tower with its injured combatants, the table in the middle still smoldering, and to where the scarred bandit should stand frozen.

Should.

But instead he just found the space empty, the wall itself barren of any sign of life.

. Viole walked towards railing, leaving bloody footprints on the stone, then wrapped his hands around the metal as he stared out at the rocky crags around him.

"No matter how long you look you won't spot the man. He's long gone by now."

"You knew, didn't you? That he would break free. Why did you let me do it?"

"How would you feel if you could not even save one life?"

Viole didn't know, he didn't want to think about it. He didn't want to think about the other walls or that throne room, he just closed his eyes and felt the wind.

"Where did he go?"

"He's probably heading to the nearest city, Ludina, several hundred miles from here." Viole opened his eyes and glanced behind him to see the Guide shrug, "As I said, there's vast distances between each city. If he's lucky he'll rejoin another gang or slaver ring, go on with his life hurting people and try to forget this place."

 _I wouldn't call that luck._ "And if he's unlucky?"

"He'll know others in town and come with a force to try to take the compound back."

…..

The rest of the day past slowly, at least for him. Hwa Ryun showed him the sleeping quarters and he picked out a room. Once inside he promptly closed and locked the door then flopped on the bed. Part of him wanted to sleep, but Viole stared up at the ceiling, not thinking, not doing, just staring.

He didn't even realize hours had passed until he heard the knock on the door.

When he opened the door Viole found Ha Jinsung standing on the other side holding a plastic bag in hand. "Got lunch for ya," he said, "Can I come in?"

Viole looked at the Ranker, took in his slanted eyes and combed back hair, took in everything, but then, after a beat, he stepped aside.

"Thanks 'Ole," he said, then he reached into the bag and pulled out a brown-package sphere. He unwrapped it to reveal a burger – patty, lettuce, tomatoes and pickles with ketchup and mustard and relish. "Got it at a MacRonald in Ludina. Didn't know what you would want on it so I got everything, huh."

Viole just stared at the burger – the condiments dripped onto the Ranker's fingers.

"Um, well," he said as he riffled through the bag, "there's also some fries and a soda, so I'll just put those here." He placed them down on a small oak table in the room, one by the corner. It had some stains. Viole looked at him. "So I'll just head off I guess."

"No," Viole said, "take a seat."

Ha Jinsung gave a small, relieved smile. "I'll like that."

Ha Jinsung pulled out a similar MacPatty, but plain compared to the monstrosity in Viole's hand. The sound of munching filled the room as the two ate in silence. During the course of it, Viole studied his martial arts instructor, eying the man up, then he put the meal away.

"Viole?"

"Is that normal for you guys?"

He put down his food as well.

"It's … necessary," he tried the word, "I haven't felt bad about hurting others for a long time."

"But not anymore?"

"When I first taught you the Flare Wave Explosion I felt it. Remorse. I thought this was not the right path for you."

 _Path? Oh, he means that Guide thing._ To be honest, even after months in the Tower he still got some of the details wrong.

"But I don't think that anymore – you'll go places Baam."

It was the first time he heard Ha Jinsung use his first name, his old name, and the word rang in Vio-in Baam's ears, he had to glance down and away from the man – he couldn't look the Ranker in the eye.

"You'll become strong – I definitely believe that. Strong enough to shake up the Tower."

And his smile vanished.

"I don't want that sort of strength," Viole said, "I want –"

"The strength not to say any more goodbyes. I remember." A beat as he glanced to the side, fries, soda and burger forgotten. "Viole," he said at last, "Do you know how old I am?"

"Uh, no." _seonsaeng_ – he nearly spoke the word. Nearly.

"Me neither. I lost track."

Viole wanted to say something to that, but he didn't have the words. It escaped him, it _all_ escaped him. But he didn't have to say anything – Ha Jinsung leaned back in his chair, fully separating himself from his food, and his eyes fell half lidded as he stared off to the side at a wall. A tension, an expectation, hung in the air then – that the man would say more.

He did.

"When I was climbing the Tower I wanted to become strong too, I pushed myself to excel, I had such _passion_ , I don't even remember the reason why but I remember that, but once I lost that reason I lost the passion as well, and all I had left was the strength – the product of my labors." He chuckled then turned his gaze off the wall and had it latch onto Viole, contemplating and deep. "It'll be the same for you," he decided, "it doesn't matter what your reasons are now – unless you manage to climb the Tower in fifty years like Urek it'll just be lost in time and blood."

"It won't be."

Maybe it was the immediate response or the surety in Viole's tone, but regardless Ha Jinsung straightened up in his chair and looked at Viole. A golden gaze met his, strong and sure. "It won't be lost," Viole repeated as he narrowed his eyes.

"After all, it's the only thing I have."


	7. Chapter 7

When Viole left the room, after Ha Jinsung had already left, he found that the compound had been transformed – he blinked and watched as a figure, decked head to toe in white, passed by him. Only then did he notice that the person had a mop in hand.

He exited out of the hallway and into the courtyard. He spotted them again – dozens of white-clothed figures up on the walls underneath a tumulus sky. Storm clouds had come and they cloaked the sky in blacks and grays and off-whites. It must have rained earlier, right after lunch, for puddles had formed along the walkways of the courtyard, and on top of each step as Viole worked his way up.

Once he made it to the top he saw groups of the white clothed figures milling about mopping the floors, getting into the cracks where Hwa Ryun's Mjollnar had struck, and cleaning the area of even the tiniest specs of blood. In the far corner, where one of the guard towers stood the door had been flung open and through it Viole could see four figures carrying a new oaken table.

They spotted him.

All motion just ceased – both for those on the walls and within the tower. Then they snapped to attention, dropping the table so it thudded in place, as they gave a salute – knifehand to brow. "Your highness!" They said at once, together, in unison – their voices creating an echo that reverberated all around him.

Viole _blinked._

He gazed over the white-clothed figures, all identical to the last, white-masks over their faces – a cloth triangle that revealed only the eyes and could not help but ask, "Who are you people?"

That caught them off guard, but one stepped forward. The person had vivid green eyes that starkly stood out in the grim haze. "We are the servants of the gods of FUG," she said, she?, yes, the voice was rather high pitch, but still Viole could only guess.

"Gods?" He asked, but felt that he already knew where this was going.

"The Slayers who will bring down Zahard and his Ten from their lofty arrogance. We have the honor of serving his Grace, himself."

A cold certainty washed over Viole then as he glanced at the woman. As he saw a rainbow in the sky behind her, shrouding her head like a colorful halo. But he had to ask, "What do you mean?"

"His Grace, Luslec Mirchea Grace, has arrived."

…

Viole hurried down the stairs, into the courtyard and to the doors to the throne room. The entire move only took moments, and it had been a blur as his mind spun. _Why?_ Was the resounding thought, though he didn't know who it was directed at. An impulse, and no more, brought Viole to this moment, in front of this door. He wanted to see. He wanted to see who this god of FUG was.

The iron wrought doors to the throne room creaked open not with a clap of noise, but with a whisper. When Viole entered he saw Ha Jinsung kneeling, but then jerking his head over. The look of panic that quickly followed his surprise almost made Viole want to turn around then and there.

"What are you doing?" The man hissed.

"It is fine, Ha Jinsung. I wanted to meet him."

The voice came from the throne, a man lounged on it. He was decked in dark black robes with scarlet spots. A close-cut beard hugged his chin and the man sported a top knot. But still, the thing to truly strike Viole was his poise – so comfortable in his own skin, so self-assured, so oozing of power that Viole could practically _taste_ it.

Viole mimicked Ha Jinsung and knelt.

"There's no need for that. Stand. Both of you."

Viole did so and spared a glance at Ha Jinsung. If the look on his face was any indication, then Grace must not have forgone formalities often.

Viole could feel the gaze, like a physical weight on his shoulders as Grace hummed, "So, our latest Slayer candidate. Why are you here?"

"Your servants outside told me you were here."

"Ah, the Devoted, of course."

"Who are they, sir?"

"The Devoted are servants who act as laborers within FUG, doing the menial jobs that Rankers could not be bothered to do. They are very loyal to the cause, having been raised that way since birth."

He started to feel it then, a creeping certainty, "Since birth? Where did they come from?"

"The Middle Area mostly. There are means for families to give up their children for the sake of a better life."

He didn't know if that could really be called a better life. Something still felt off about it, that creeping certainty from before told him that there was more to the Devoted than what was being said, but Viole did not say anything. He just frowned – glancing over to the side where a window overlooked the courtyard.

"But that still does not fully answer the question. _Why_ are you here?"

The man just sat there, impassive, waiting. Something cold twisted in the pit of his stomach as the full weight of these last two weeks fell on him. All at once, Viole's gaze hardened then he said, "You know what? It was a mistake to come." Tasting, balancing the words. "If you don't mind I'll dismiss myself."

With that, Viole turned around to head towards the door. Or was about to. The moment he turned around Viole felt it – a creeping sensation that crawled up his spine and struck at his heart. A feeling that swept down his arms, over his torso, and down his legs.

 _He froze me._

"I never said you could leave."

Grace got up from the throne and approached him. Long strides that made the hem of the robe whip around him with every step. He stopped right in front of the boy. Suddenly, like with a snap, Viole's head was free though the rest of his body remained frozen. He could twist his head and see Ha Jinsung standing tense by the wall, hands flexing.

"Do you know why I think you came, Viole?"

His head was free but he still didn't dignify that with a response.

"I think you wanted to see me, to know me, to know the one who put you through all of this." With that, in a span of a second, Viole was free, his body jerked down as the invisible hand let it go. "Well, congratulations, you'll get that chance. We are going to have some long talks, you and I."

Viole felt the shout bubble up to his lips, felt the shinsoo circulate and spin throughout him – faster and faster. He felt his body tense, ready to spring into action, but he did not move.

Instead, he nodded.

Treacherously, he nodded.

…

Hours later he sat across Hwa Ryun, with eleven plastic cards between them – all with different colors and designs. Their lesson today was outdoors, at Viole's insistence, and they sat in the courtyard, on the grass, underneath one of the trees that cast the entire area in shadow. The Devoted hurried about them. He glared at the cards.

"You're scowling again."

A beat of silence followed that as he eyed the redheaded Guide. He noticed that she wore rather frilly and elaborate clothes – mostly dark, mostly black. Then Viole glanced away to where one of the servants rushed past with arms full of laundry. His gaze hardened as he said, "I don't like this."

"Noted, but you still need to learn. And this is the start of it," she said, waving her hand over the cards, "Being able to tell me what card belongs to which Family."

Viole looked at the cards, truly studied them – it was the first time he had seen these Crests laid like this after all. The blue feather of the Koon family, with its black tail was easily recognizable, and the picture of the white longsword with the dots on the side must belong to the Arie family, but then he glanced over at a new image, a familiar image, and he paused, his eyes steadily growing larger as realization dawned.

"Hwa Ryun-ssi."

For some reason she _sighed_ at that, "What is it?"

"That one," he said, pointing to an insignia of three red eyes – layered on top of each other in a triangle with three dots underneath it, "That's the Crest of Zahard, right?"

Again, for some reason, her smirk grew wider at that, "That's right." She raised an eyebrow, "So?"

He felt his world clamp up on itself. His excitement dwindled then died. "Nothing."

"You're a bad liar," she said, tilting her head, making her locks cascade down, "What are you getting at?"

The words didn't want to come out. He felt them lodge in his throat – as if stuck. Viole nearly gulped, but still kept his gaze locked on hers. He had told the story of the Cave before to Koon and Ship Lesso and Hatsu, but that was before and things had changed.

And even if he did tell someone he didn't want to tell it to _her._

"It's nothing, really, I just thought it was interesting that there were three of them."

"Well, there are Three Lords so it makes sense."

Viole stared at her.

Hwa Ryun looked back – smirksmile growing.

"Okay, you're going to have to go over this with me."

"Molic One P. GR, Joochun of the Ari family, and Flux, Master of Illusions, they take turns every 1,000 years in ruling the Tower in Zahard's place. The Three Lords have authority in the Tower and have vetoing power for the Ruler's Conference."

"The Ruler's Conference?"

"It's an event that happens during the shift of the Three Lords – all the Rulers gather together from all the Floors and all the Ten Heads are required to come, though Zahard hasn't made it since the first one."

"How come?"

"Since he's asleep, like most of the Slayers."

"What – " Viole began to say but Hwa Ryun cut off the conversation by leaning over and scoping up the cards – creating a deck in her hands.

"Wait!" Viole said as she pocketed them and began to walk off.

"We'll continue this lesson later. I think it's about time you met up with Grace." She said without turning around.

He grabbed her shoulder, "But I still have questions though. If there are Three Lords as well how come there aren't Slayers for them? There are ones for Zahard and the Ten Warriors."

She glanced over her shoulder. He couldn't really read her, but he thought she looked more exasperated than usual. She sighed, "Use that brain of yours, Viole. Why do you _think_ there wouldn't be a need to kill them directly?"

"I … I'm not sure," Viole confessed, "they'll die on their own?"

"Yes, they will die when Zahard dies. That's the price they paid in order to get a third of his power."

"Wait. So not only is Zahard asleep but he's given away all his power to the Three Lords?"

"But even then, he still has enough strength to be ranked third in the Tower and to share his power with the Princesses."

She let that sink in, the enormity of just how strong Zahard was, of just what FUG hoped to achieve, settled down on him. That ever-present smirk of hers disappeared, as a cut of a frown etched onto her face. Hwa Ryun narrowed her eyes, to the point where they nearly became half-lidded, and when she next spoke, she spoke in a whisper:

"That's who you have to kill, Viole."


	8. Chapter 8

"So, take a seat."

They stood in the mess hall of the compound. The Devoted, three of them in matching aprons, stood ready to serve behind the counter. Viole glanced at the trays of food then at the rows upon rows of empty tables.

Save for Luslec Mirchea Grace.

The man nodded at him as Viole did as told and took a seat, tray in hand. Still he looked at the tray as he placed it down on top of the metallic table. It reminded him of those times they had eaten on the Floor of Test, of his attempts to get Androssi to sign the friendship sheet. The memory came to him, quick and vivid, but only for a moment. He twirled the fork around in the noddles.

"Sorry it's so quiet," the leader said, "We'll have this place flooded with muscle soon."

 _Is that supposed to be reassuring?_

Viole stopped, just put the fork down by the plate, and looked at Grace, "So," he said – testing the word, "What now?"

"Good question," Grace said as he leaned forward – food forgotten. "I guess we can start with some questions."

Despite himself, Viole openly scowled. He didn't know if he wanted to answer any questions from the man. He didn't even tell Hwa Ryun about the Cave, though she was a familiar face who also had been on the Second Floor with him, so he sure didn't want to tell a complete stranger like Grace.

For his part, Grace seemed to read his hesitance. He held his hands up, "Fine, if you don't want to say anything you don't have to. We can start with me. Do you have any questions for me?"

His first reaction was to just say no. To end the conversation then and there and shut himself down. But the words _'Do you have any questions for me?'_ just resounded in his heads, and Viole found a single question repeating itself over and over in his head.

"Why?"

Grace raised an eyebrow. He had a smirk on his face like Hwa Ryun did or, once he allowed himself to think of it, like Koon did. So self-assured.

 _Damn. Taking the bait again._ "Why did you create the Federation?"

Grace smiled before asking a question back, "Do you know that the Empire says that they brought civilization into the Tower?"

"I … I think I've heard that before."

"It's a lie. There were countries and cultures and languages on each Floor of the Inner Tower, though no one knew that they were on a Floor, or even that they were in a Tower. We were separated from each other, isolated, with no way to contact each other, and even if we could we had no way to communicate without Pockets. Still, though, cultures existed."

It didn't take Viole long to realize that the point of view when he spoke shifted, "We?"

"Yes," Grace said, turning his head to the side, "That middle name: Mirchea. I chose the name after the country I was born in – one that no longer exists."

Something clicked and that excitement from before, from earlier in the day, returned in full force. Viole jumped up, gripped the edge of the table, and said, "You were the ruler of Mirchea! That's why you created FUG! To get it back!"

Grace blinked at him.

Then he laughed.

And laughed.

And kept laughing as Baam slid back into his seat, red-faced, "I thought it made sense," he muttered.

"No," he said, "I wasn't the ruler. In fact, Mirchea had no ruler, no king, it was a republic."

 _A what now?_

"More than that, though, I wasn't anyone special. Just a preacher."

"A preacher?"

"A man of faith."

Viole just looked at him, trying to wrap his mind around the thought. She … Rachel … she told him a bit about religion, how there were texts that "morons" just took as truth (now that he thought about it she had always been rather abrasive – he had just dismissed it as joking before), but she had never gone into details. Even if she had the religions from the Outside would probably be different than the ones in the Tower.

"So, you have something you believe in?"

"Believed," he corrected, "Quite a few things changed, but for a while, after everything happened, I tried to hold a certain … mindset, I guess you'd call it." The pause, the afterthought, it all pointed to uncertainty that Grace measured and chose his words carefully.

"And that mindset?"

"Grace."

And another thing snapped in place. The impact of it rushed through Viole as he just stared at where the man sat. The words came before he really registered them, "Your name holds a lot of meaning to you."

That caused _another_ laugh.

"Yes," he said after the laugher died down, "I'd say so or at least it did."

"Then what does grace mean to you?"

He smiled at that. Luslec shifted his body and took on a nostalgic air. Viole could tell, practically sense, that the man's next words were long practiced.

"Do you know what the difference is between mercy and grace?"

"Not really."

"Mercy is to give someone what they deserve while grace is to give someone what they don't deserve."

Viole thought he got it. "So, for example, mercy killing –"

"It's when someone is suffering and you end their pain. You give them what they deserve – relief."

Honestly, even if he got it, he didn't really _get_ it. And by now he had the creeping suspicion that he didn't want to. For a moment, Viole paused, opening and closing his mouth, but then he asked, "Why is that so important to you?"

"Why indeed?" He asked, a fog seemed to linger over his words. As Viole looked on he saw the man close in on himself, pulling the collar of his robe to his chest and stepping away from the table, "It's a long story, Viole. One best saved for another time."

Once more his mouth opened but this time Viole had no words to say. He just nodded.

Grace seemed to accept that. He nodded back, turned around and headed to the far door.

Viole watched him go.

…

As promised, the hired muscle, more FUG men, came in later that day, after the dinner, under the cover of darkness. From up on the walls Viole watched as dozens, if not hundreds, of guards filtered in from the outside – from up above, it looked like the sands in an hourglass; just trickling in. At this point, even if that lone survivor did make it to the city he would have to hire an army to take the compound back.

"Should we go down and greet them?"

Viole turned around to see Ha Jinsung standing behind him. "You should get used to being seen," he went on. But Viole just turned his back on the man, slumping against the stone wall.

"I don't really feel like it."

Surprisingly, that caused a snort of laughter from the man. Viole shot a look over his shoulder.

"That sound like … well … someone I knew a long time ago. Don't be such a child, 'Ole."

"Pardon me for being a child then."

"Do you not want to see them because you'll have to kill a couple?"

 _That_ caused Viole to spin back around. Ha Jinsung stood where he had before, hands in pockets, so casual and at ease. He could have been talking about the weather for all the tension in his face and tone. Death meant nothing to him.

"In an escape attempt."

Now Viole knew what the Ranker meant but he still shook his head – fast and rough.

"No. _No!_ I wouldn't betray my friends like that."

"I'm sure the fact that Grace is in the building has nothing to do with it?"

"Actually, it doesn't."

He paused at that, as if looking, as if searching, Viole's eyes. Seeing if he's serious. Ha Jinsung must have come to a conclusion because he walked by to the lip of the wall, pulled a pack of cigarettes from his pocket and lit up. As the smoke rose up Viole took a step back, getting out of the way of the secondhand smoke. Ha Jinsung looked down at the procession below, took the cig out and blew once more.

"You won't get far up the Tower if you have a death wish, kid."

"I wouldn't call it that."

He snorted, "Of course you wouldn't." Then he reached over and smashed the cigarette against one of the battlements. Once the light snuffed out Viole only had the starlight to see. But that was still enough to see the man's face, to see the anger that flashed over it, that washed over it. Such a deep anger, nearly matching the one he had seen earlier when Ha Jinsung intervened against Yu Han Sung. "Then let me put it this way – it would be a dog's death. Your friends would never learn that you were really alive and you'd fade away in obscurity."

Viole wanted to take a step back, but just couldn't.

"I have no intention of dying."

Ha Jinsung paused then he sighed, "No, I guess not." He gave Viole this smile – this sort of half, sad little smile. "Still, I know you don't like it here but just hold on."

Viole looked at the man, a steady look, then he nodded.

Ha Jinsung gave a smile in return and clasped a hand on Viole's shoulder, "I'll see you in the morning."

After he left, Viole found himself looking up at the fake stars. He felt the chill in the wind on his face and heard the clamor from below as the garrison settled in. With Ha Jinsung gone, with him alone up on the wall, none was there to hear him ask.

"Hold on for how long?"


	9. Chapter 9

"I want to go to Ludina."

"No."

Ha Jinsung just kept eating – he didn't even look up in his response.

It was early in the morning. Dawn had already risen and the sunrise cast out rays of yellows and oranges that painted the sky in many colors. The mess hall, attached to the side of the compound, was quiet and still. Only a few people filled the room. Guards, yawning and stretching and lining up, and the Devoted who had been there before him moved about around the room.

They gave the Ranker and the Slayer Candidate a large berth.

"I'm going crazy. I haven't been able to sleep well in weeks. Last night I didn't sleep a wink."

"I don't see how that's my problem."

"I just need something to do. Something to see."

"Then read. We do have a library."

"I can't read any of those books!"

After the outburst, several different people, guards and Devoted alike, stole glances at the two of them. Then they looked away. Ha Jinsung seemed surprised at the shout, eyes widening. To be fair, Viole was surprised as well. But assurance crept in and the boy straightened his back. In the Tower, multiple languages resided on each Floor with only Pockets allowing people to communicate.

But that was only for the spoken word.

"You can learn the hard way like everyone else," Viole opened his mouth to respond but Ha Jinsung went on, " _Or_ you can scan books and read them off your Pocket."

Viole blinked. "It can do that?"

"It can."

Viole pushed the surprise aside, "Well," he said, "I still would like to go to Ludina. I've been cooped up inside for weeks – first the cave and now this place. I just need to get away."

Ha Jinsung paused at that. Examined him with a searching gaze like the one he had last night. Finally, the man sighed. "Alright," he said.

And Baam beamed. "Thank you!" He exclaimed, suddenly lunging over to hug the man.

Immediately, the Ranker tensed in his arms – stiff and unwieldly. Viole let go and stepped back – suddenly uncomfortable. For his part, Ha Jinsung looked just as awkward. He crossed his arms and glanced to the side, "You'll need a disguise," he said after a moment, "and a guard detail."

Baam smiled. "Sure."

"And I have just the disguise for you."

He tilted his head.

…

It was only later that Viole looked at the "perfect" disguise stretched out on his bed. A dull gold dragoncat mask. Some sort of shinshueh that lived in the upper Floors, Viole at least had to admit that it was quality make with the webbed forehead and scaled cheeks. The second half of the disguise was a red robe with a matching hood to hide the hair and neck. Lastly, there was a blond wig, one with long tresses. Viole didn't really know why that was there.  
Viole reached out a hand, brushing against the fabric, unable to think save that, _I don't want to wear this._

Perhaps all his experiences of being snuck up on had accumulated, but Viole just _felt_ the need to turn around. From the open doorway of his room Viole watched as two people came around the corner of the hallway. They stopped when they spotted him.

They were a boy and a girl – around his age and lacking the sheer presence that Rankers possessed. Guards most likely. The boy had short, cropped sandy blond hair and an impassive, bored face, not even really looking at him. He stood slouched, as if to cave in on himself and vanish from sight. Unnoticeable.

But the girl was eye catching enough for the both of them.

Her hair _glowed_. Straight down to her shoulders, ripples coursed through it. If she was a redhead Viole would say that it looked like fire, but instead it was a dark black. Like black flame. Flickering.

"Ah! You must be Viole. A pleasure to meet you." She smiled brightly and held out a hand.

After a beat he took it.

"I'm Taeyang Bok Dol."

Bok Dol. Spearbearers. Crest of a black sun over stilled waters.

 _How apt._

After that, Viole moved on to shake the man's hand. For a moment he just paused, taking in the palm with a lazy eye, but then he shook.

"Ruard," he yawned.

"So," Viole began once Ruard let go, "You're both on guard duty?"

"Yes," Taeyang replied. "We'll be taking you to the city. We have some errands as well so you'll have to come in with us. Was there anything in particular that you wanted to do?"

"Not really, I just wanted to get out, you know?"

She didn't. Or at least it didn't seem she did – Taeyang gave no nod of encouraging understanding, she gave no smile, she gave nothing at all but just stood there. Oddly, it was Ruard who nodded at that, humming a, "That makes sense. Anyone would get a bit stir crazy. Well," he amended, "Anyone normal."

Taeyang shot him a look then headed around the bend, flinging her hair over her shoulder.

It turned out that wasn't just a dismissive gesture, but rather Taeyang kept her hand on her hair and began to wrap it around her skull, once, twice.

"What are you doing?"

She paused at that, eying him, then she put on a skull cap, pressing the hair to her head.

"What does it look like?"

She then stepped into the room, right by him, and put on the blond wig.

"A disguise. The Gift is just too noticeable." Then she smirked, an expression that seemed familiar yet out of place on this newcomer's face. "Why? Did you want it?"

Baam felt heat rise through his face. "N…no. I'm good."

Ruard smirked as well and for a moment Baam thought he was going to join in on the teasing, but he gestured over Baam's shoulder – to the bed. "You best put on your disguise as well. Don't want anyone recognizing you."

And his sheepish smile faded. Viole walked past the two of them and into the room proper. "Very well, wait outside for a moment."

As the two went outside, Viole looked down at the mask and the robe. He reached over for the dragoncat mask, he felt along its edges, traced the grooves and gills, then lifted it off the sheets. He stared down at its eyes, into the tanned bronze, then flipped it over and snapped it in place.

He didn't waste time examining the robe, but rather slipped it on, letting the cloth fall into place. As for the hood, it consisted of layered cloth that Viole wrapped around his head. There were strings around his neck and buttons down the middle of the chest to latch everything into place. When he was done, Viole looked at his reflection in the mirror. A masked man greeted him back.

Once done, Viole left the room. Both Taeyang and Ruard were waiting for him and Taeyang nodded her head when he approached, that teasing smile back in place. "All ready, I see."

Viole held his hands up, making the long sleeves flap. "Doesn't this go against the point of a disguise?"

"You'd be surprised."

Viole nearly tilted his head in confusion, but just went along with the two of them as they headed down the hallway. Upon stepping out into the compound proper Viole saw dozens of people, the Devoted and guards alike, milling about – dawn had already come fully and day was on them. As they made their way to the front gate, Viole could only hope they made it to Ludina by midday.

The gate rose up with a quiet groan, the metal clanking as it ascended. Viole followed Taeyang and Ruard out, just two steps behind. Since he had come those couple days ago, he had seen the outside from the view from the walls, but it was different now. Down below, on the well-trodden road that snaked out of the compound, it was easy to just get lost in the crags and hills that surrounded them.

He began to feel it then, that creeping sense of _wrongness_. The fact that both Taeyang and Ruard were so quiet also didn't help. With each step, Viole felt more and more uneasy – a tension hung in the air as the boy eyed the two's backs in front of him.

When Viole rounded the bend and saw Jiggu Reinu-Eurasia there he was practically expecting it.

The weight came on him then, just like before, pressing down on his shoulders and back, but this time Viole did not fall flat on his stomach but took a knee, and felt his body be pressed in the dirt.

"Oh?" Jiggu said.

Then the pressure redoubled.

Once more, Viole wobbled and he might have fallen if he hadn't thrown out his hands to brace himself. His other leg began to twitch, then he dragged it – creating a furrow against the ground. He got his feet under him then pushed up, staggering then straightening out.

Jiggu Reinu-Eurasia looked surprised.

And if he was just surprised then Taeyang and Ruard by his side both looked _gobsmacked_ , both wielding expressions that reminded him of Ho. Yes, Viole had seen such looks before – in another life, in another time. But then Jiggu just smothered his shock and nodded, "I heard of your shinsoo resistance, of course, but this is something else entirely."

"I thought you were on a mission. Why are you here? What are you doing?"

"I'm still on that mission. I'm just here to check out your new cage."

Viole scowled out that, though the Ranker couldn't see it through the mask.

"As for what I'm doing. You're apparently heading out to town, right? We need to make sure you don't how to get to Ludina from here."

Viole wanted to shout, 'I'm not going to run away. Don't you people _get_ that?' but the words did not come out. Rather, he felt the weight, the pressure, surround him, encompass him, and, at last, overwhelm him. He tilted in place, slipping sidewise as the world dimmed and narrowed.

All was black.


	10. Chapter 10

Viole awoke slowly. A blink before his eyes opened to a flood of light.

Three lightboxes hovered overhead, attached to a ceiling fan. Light emitted from their jagged forms, crisscrossing and layered. The fan itself just spun and spun, silent as Viole stared up at it. _I guess I'm in Ludina._ Viole didn't think he would awake before they were there – they probably have that timed out.

Viole sat up in the bed and took a look around. The room was small. Cramped. Every inch of the floor was covered in crates, barrels and scraps of metal that littered the floor, the counter along the wall and were piled up in the corners. The bed itself lay squeezed by it all. Viole seemed to be sleeping in a storage room of all places. _How am I supposed to get out of here?_ He wondered. _If I walk I'll step on something._

"You're awake I see."

The boy, Ruard, stood in front of it. Arms folded and leaning against the doorway.

"I take it that Jiggu is not with us."

"Nope. He went back onto his assignment."

 _At least there's something to be happy about._

"So, how do I get out of here anyway?"

Ruard just shrugged at that, "You're a Wavecontroller, aren't you? Just blast your way through."

 _I don't think that's –_ " ** _No_**!"

The yell reverberated across the room, seeming to shake the blades of the fans and jar Viole where he sat on the bed. The next moment a balding, heavyset man hurried into the room. The whitening hair that jutted to either side of his head shivered as he moved. "Don't. Touch. Anything." He emphasized with his hands.

Viole just looked past him to Ruard.

The boy answered his unasked question. He slung an arm around the man's shoulders, "This is Dr. Lasco, inventor extraordinaire." He said that last bit by gesturing with his free hand – sweeping across the air.

Dr. Lasco was not amused.

He shrugged off the arm, stepped back and then lifted his nose into the air as he spoke, " _Well,_ I wouldn't _quite_ put it that way, but it's true, isn't it? It's true. Anyways, this is all very delicate equipment. I'll clear the way for you, yes, yes, that will do nicely."

Lasco hustled into the room – bending down and scooping up all that crossed his path. Viole suspected there was some sort of method to his madness. There were times he would hover in front of a counter or pry a lid off a crate to drop off the pieces of metal and wood. There were several cans of paint and some brushes as well. All in all, Viole didn't know what to make of it.

As Lasco scurried about the cluttered room Viole watched as Ruard raised a single hand, before sliding two fingers together; the movement was slight – if he was not looking he would have missed it.

But then Lasco howled. He clutched his back and started looking around wildly. From behind his back Ruard gave Viole a wink. To be honest, the boy was caught off guard. A prank? He had never seen it but - well, he had heard of them before.

Eventually his gaze settled on the two of them. For a moment, Viole thought the man was going to (rightfully) accuse them of harassing him, but he just sighed and headed to the doorway. "The way is clear now. Follow me."

As Lasco went ahead Viole trailed behind - hissing a whisper at the other boy.

"What did you do?"

"I'm a telekinetic," he said - waving a hand at a nearby potted plant, sitting in the corner of the hallway. It hovered up in the air, gong, and went back down when he lowered his hand. "I made a chill crawl up his spine - like ice water being poured down his shirt."

Viole understood but did not understand, "Why?"

He snorted a smile.

"Because I could."

...

When they reached the end of the hallway Viole found himself in a whole new world.

On the ceiling, around a spinning fan, hung crisscrossed lines of multicolored flags. Bright colors seemed to be the theme of the room as the walls, too, had vivid abstract designs and geometric shapes. And Viole could tell why that potted plant was in the back, the room had an abundance of greenery. Creeping vines clung to the walls and plants rowed the aisles.

But all of this paled to the actual contents of the store.

A flock of wooden birds circled above, right below the fan, and were painted in vibrant reds, blues, and assembled themselves on stone ledges, and an odd contraption circled the room, it moved on top these tracks - blowing up smoke and making a high-pitched whistling sound. Viole stared at it, bending down to brush his fingers against.

"Amazing, isn't it?"

Viole straightened up from where he was bent over. Dr. Lasco stood behind him. He had moved out from behind the front counter where he had watched the two of them enter in from the hallway. The smile he wore now seemed all the greater due to how grim his face had seemed moments ago.

Viole's eyes honed back onto the moving vehicle. "Yes," he admitted, "but what _is_ it?"

"A train. Have you've never seen one before?"

"No," Then he breathed the next words out, "Never heard of it either."

"Well, a real train is huge. People board them as passengers to go from place to place."

"I see." And Viole did. Back then, he been stuck in the Cave for a long, long time, but once coming to the Floor of Test he came to appreciate just how _big_ the world is. He could see the value in a train for speedy travel, in fact…

He almost asks _Does the Tower have trains?_ before remembering that he's not supposed to even hint at the fact he's an Irregular, so instead he says, "What's the most famous train?"

For some reason, he scrunches his face up in pain at that, "Just some test for those Regular folks. Anyway," he switches topics before the boy could question him further, he turned around and swept a hand over the entire room. "What do you think of all the _toys?_ "

"So, they are toys."

"Indeed, indeed. I made them myself you see. You are standing in Dr. Lasco's Magical Emporium! For all your toy and game needs."

A eagerness came over Viole then, and for a moment, a brief moment, he was Baam again. He took a step forward and opened his mouth but before he could speak a voice cut in.

"Who's really a fraud doctor."

And that eagerness vanished. Viole turned to look at where Ruard casually leaned against the wall, gazing at them both with bored eyes. The yawn only cinched it.

Lasco sputtered at him, "What do you mean by that?"

"You're not a healer or a professor so you have no right to call yourself a doctor. You're a fraud."

"I don't claim to be a licensed doctor. It's for the kids."

"Do we look like kids?"

He closed his mouth at that, a snap, shut. Viole can see his face turn red – a slow filtering in of color. He wondered what the man wanted to say, but only for a moment. Ruard stepped further into the brightly painted store heading towards the front door. He turned around, back against the wood.

"Remember to put on the mask."

Viole reached up to his forehead to feel the dragoncat mask still in place. He whirled around to look at Lasco, but the toymaker just looked back. He had … he had seen Viole's true face when FUG clearly wanted to hide it. Who was this man? What was his connection to FUG?

"Let's go."

Viole only looked at the man for a beat longer, before sliding down the mask and heading towards the door. A/N: So, I've restarted this for the last month or two on another site,but I decided to post some chapters here too (at least until the new arc). Consider it a Christmas gift. If you want to read what I've posted so far you can just Google "Spacebattles - In the Dark (Tower of God fanfic)." Should be the first hit. Please note that if you want to comment you must have a account.

Happy Holidays!


	11. Chapter 11

Viole walked in silence.

There wasn't much to see or do. Lasco' Emporium was situated in a back alley. It was not a narrow alley, but a long, smooth, tall cement wall sat across from him. Pure grey. Not much to say or do.

That left him with just watching Ruard's back as the two approached the end of the alleyway. He hesitated while still away from the mouth of the alley - Viole suddenly had many doubts about his disguise. He would definitely stand out as the "stranger in the odd mask". Didn't that -

And then everything changed.

Night had come over Ludina but light filtered over everything - the crisscrossing lines with square, paper lamps, the multicolored bulbs that blinked from above, and the street posts that dotted the corners and threw passerbys in stark relief.

And that revealed the truth of the disguise. They were masked. All of them wore masks and colorful, flowing robes. Viole just stood still and silent as he watched a group of three, one of which was a unmasked child sitting on the shoulders of an adult, pass by underneath one of the street posts. The adult (parent?) held up a stick of something fluffy and pink and the little girl took a bite.

"Cotton Candy. Would you like to try some?"

Viole whirled around to Ruard, "What is this?"

"Ludina's annual Year of Victory Celebration. I thought you knew this festival was happening. Wasn't that why you asked to leave?"

...No. It wasn't.

"Well, it doesn't matter," he says - cutting off Viole's worries. "We will only be able to see a bit of the festival - still have those errands and all."

"It'll be more than enough to have fun though."

Viole shouldn't have been surprised. He knew she would be one of his "bodyguards" but was still surprised nonetheless by Taeyang standing there on the corner - the blonde wig from before on her head and looking like it was seamlessly attached. He has the inane thought of asking her how she did it, but a voice snaps him out of it.

"Well, if you're here I guess I can leave him in your hands."

The sound of Ruard's receding footsteps and lazy wave greeted Viole as he turned around. RBut he didn't have the chance to address the boy.

Taeyang would have none of it.

The young woman from FUG latched onto his shoulder - halting the man in place. "Where the hell do you think you're going?"

He looks over his shoulder at her - he had his usual bored look but something else as well. Disdain?

"What? I have something I need to do. If you think the festival is so fun, you two can scurry off and be kids."

"You know I can't just let you do that. We're all supposed to go together. Safer that way."

"Not going to make much difference against a -".

Viole could feel eyes on them so he cut in, "Maybe we can move this argument somewhere else?"

"No." Taeyang bit out, her voice frosty. "Ruard is right. It wouldn't make a difference. We can multitask." She smiled and Viole had never quite seen a smile like that before. "Good luck."

And that bored look on his face was back in place, paired with a sigh. "Will do."

And he started to walk away at that, and Taeyang turned around and went the other way. After a beat of hesitance Viole followed her.

"What was that about?"

Taeyang sighed. "It's nothing really ... I'm sorry you had to see that."

"It's fine, don't worry about it". Just to show that he hadn't gIven up Viole added, "So..."

"Ugh-okay, I've kinda been trying to befriend him since we met."

...don't make assumptions. "Why?"

"We're the only Regulars here - everyone else is either Rankers or hired thugs."

Fair enough. "What about Hwa Ryun?"

A beat of silence as she looked at him. Stared at him. The silence carried it's own weight and pressed down on their shoulders. Viole had to break.

"Right. Of course. Silly question."

She looked after him for a moment then sighed, "To be honest, I see less of her than I do some Rankers. She's just never around. In fact, I've seen her more in the last couple weeks than I have in years. I don't know why but she's sticking around you like butter. Or as close as she gets."

A conversation from the cave comes to mind, right when he learned the Flare Wave Explosion. _My God_. His eyes became half-lidded as a weight settled on him. Similar to the one caused by the silence but more distinct, heavier in a way. "She's looking for something I can't offer."

"It looks like you have more of a issue with her than me." She muttered so softly that Viole almost didn't hear it. "Anyway, let's try out some of the games!"

He didn't have time to get a word in edgewise as Taeyang had already grabbed Viole's wrist and dragged him forward.


	12. Chapter 12

"I've never used one of these before."

Viole turned over the wooden object in his hands, feeling it's smooth contours. He recognized it. On the Floor of Test one of the Regulars had shot him with one. A gun. Or at least it's likeness.

He looked up at his targets. Three rows lined the back wall. They were filled with things like stuffed animals, "electronics", toys (he noticed that none of Dr. Lasco's wooden creations are there) and plastic statues - table place settings.

Viole rested the rifle against the crook of his neck, and took aim at this weird lion-giraffe shinueh thing. The first shot ... went wildly off-course. The stuffed animal remained where it was - as if mocking him.

"Ah, maybe next time then."

Viole looked at (not quite glared, but close) Taeyang as the young woman leaned against a counter - munching on the same fluffy pink cotton candy thing he had seen earlier.

"Why aren't you trying your hand at it then?"

"Well, that would hardly be fair even if these games are scams."

The man behind the stall at the shooting game sat on a stool, crossed arms, and was staring out into space. But at the sound of Taeyang's accusation he turned to her. "That's uncalled for, ma'am. This is a -"Yeah, yeah," she waved off. Then to Viole, "Try it again."

He turned back to the stuffed animal, lifting the rifle up to his shoulder. A calm settled on him as he held his breath and looked down the long, wooden part. The world narrowed down to just him and the stuffed animal as he pulled the trigger.

He still missed.

Viole pulled up from the rifle – staring both at his target and where the bullet actually went. To be honest, though it may sound boastful to think it, Viole was just not used to not "getting" a new thing by the second try. That was how it was with the Flare Wave Explosion, maybe…

"Huh, that's interesting. So, the test proved something after all. Maybe you'll hit it next time if I take the bb gun and shoot you with it."

Viole spun over to Taeyang, "That won't be…wait. Did they ask you to observe and test me and you never wanted the stuffed animal?"

The silence that followed told him all he needed to know.

"…I see." Viole dropped it and let the rifle flop to the counter. He began to walk off.

"You still have your third try," She called after him.

"Take it!"

The multicolored lights that hovered above the street cast shadows that followed Viole as he walked. He climbed down a hill, passing by several passerbys – several disguised like him, and let the din, the buzz of conversation, wash over him. He stopped and sighed.

Viole shouldn't be surprised, and in all honesty? He wasn't. Since the get go nearly a month ago FUG has been determined to train him – to raise him up as a Slayer candidate. It makes sense that they would want to know more about how he learns, but…Viole had been looking forward to befriending people like him again. Optimistic and free from the stress that climbing to the top of the tower seems to naturally cause. If not young like him due to some Regulars being hundreds of years old than at the very least companions that Viole could grow close to.

Maybe –

"Oh, good. You didn't get too far ahead."

Viole turned around, but then saw the thing cradled in her hands.

"What _is_ that thing?"

"What? This?" She said, lifting it up. Light glanced off its metallic surface. "It's a toaster."

He stared.

"…do you seriously not know what a toaster is?"

…

"You can stop now."

The laughter from Taeyang had died down to mere chuckles as the two of them continued to walk down the hill filled with stalls of many kinds. She held a closed fist by her mouth as if to hide her growing smile. "Sorry, sorry," she said, "Still you thought, you thought – "

"I thought toast was made by taking a slice of bread, closing your hands around it and squeezing tightly."

The chuckles rang out into a peal of laughter,

"I mean, come on! It makes sense! When you first make a bang in your hands it gets really hot! I was basically thinking of a toaster, but with shinsoo!"

The fist flew from her mouth to her stomach, as he stopped in place, bent over, and bellowed.

The loudness of the laugh drew the attention of more than a few other festival-goers.

"…let's just go."

"Sure, sure. Just hold on a minute. Let me catch my breath."

Before Viole even really noticed it, the duo had reached the bottom of the hill. Smoky gong swirled around them – issuing out of torches that lined the street. Though it was night it still made the surroundings take on a sickly, orange hue. The stalls stopped here.

"It looks like the festival was on that hill. Seems that's it."

"There's one over there."

Sure enough, Viole looked over to where Taeyang pointed to find a squat stall. It was painted in bright red, orange and yellow (as if to imitate fire). There was a shark demihuman (like one of the ones that used to hold the base) standing in front of it, holding a wooden mallet then swinging it down on figures that popped out of holes.

Viole's smile at the sight of the game withered as he turned to the young woman by his side.

"So, what? Are you going to measure the strength of my swings somehow? Time my reaction speed?"

"Nope! Have at 'em!"

Viole hesitated for a moment, before stepping forward.

The odd sharkman had finished his turn by the time Viole stepped up. This close, what was once just indistinct blurs of brown and red to him became clear.

 _"Quant-ssi?I"_

The figures with the familiar face just continued to pop out, wearing a giant grin, and giving a thumb up.

"You want to go, kid?" The stall owner, a woman with a shaved head and a scar on her chin, asked – holding out the mallet.

Viole looked at it before glancing over at the miniature Quants. "…actually, I think I'm good."

Taeyang was silent as they walked away, but once they were away she asked, "What was that about?"

"I knew I probably wouldn't have it in me."

"What?"

But Viole was already looking back up the hill, through the haze to the stalls that lined either side of the street. "Is the festival only here?"

"Basically, the Year of Victory Celebration in Ludina is always on the Ulpius Hill."

Now it was Viole's turn to have a beat of silence. "I didn't know you're familiar with this city," he settled on. "You've been here often?"

"A couple times."

"Then do you know of a good place we can go to next?"

She turned to look at him and smiled.


	13. Chapter 13

"A roller rink?"

"An _abandoned_ roller rink."

It certainly looked it. The building was crumbling where it stood nestled at the far end of town and hidden away in an alleyway. Unlike the brightly lit Ulipus Hill this corner of the city was marred in shadows. Viole could only just make out the sight of cracks that spider webbed across the walls of the rink and the faded yellow lettering on the top that read "The Hillside Rink" – not because they were shallow and faint but because visibility was just that poor.

"How do you know about roller rinks anyway?"

 _Flash of blue hair gliding through the ring, a giant figure stumbling in place, a black-haired youth reclining back on a table as a man in a tracksuit and a short lizard demihuman bicker._ Viole squeezes his eyes shut. "I just know, okay?"

"Okay," She repeats, tearing her eyes away from him to fasten on a pair of roller blades.

"So how do you know of this place?"

"I used to come here quite a bit when it was still open," Taeyang said.

"Have you lived here long?"

She finished tying on the shoes then straightened up to look him in the eye. There was a smile on her face, but for some reason the sight of it made him want to frown.

"Sorry, I can't tell you that."

And with that she pushed off and entered the ring.

…

It wasn't the same.

As Viole glided around the ring, having put on the shoes and took off the disguise, he could only think of how different it was. His memories were of bright lights on the ceiling and the buzz of conversation. But in here, darkness swallowed the place and a silence seemed to fall over the place…especially on Taeyang. The young woman had not uttered a peep from earlier, and from what Viole could see of her face as he glided behind her Taeyang seemed…distant. Eyes dim as she moved about in a circle.

Wherever she was she was not here.

…for some reason, Viole just didn't like that look on her face.

He sped up to reach her then Viole's hand darted out to slap her, Taeyang tumbled – falling to the ground with a thud. She snapped her head up – that distant look replaced with one of surprise and growing anger, "What the fu –"

"Tag."

He rolled away as she stared at his retreating back, _"Seriously?"_

Viole sped up.

To be honest, Viole was pretty certain that when Taeyang initially followed after him it was not at all due to her wanting to tag him. Her red face told him that she was pretty pissed off. So he swung around, moving backwards, to face the young woman.

She didn't understand what was going on when Baam pulled his first funny face.

He stretched out his checks with his fingers and rolled his eyes up. Taeyang cracked a smile. He stuck his tongue out on his upper lip, beneath the nose, and held his hands up in supplication…or like Shopin. She snorted a laugh. Viole rolled his head around three times spinning in place, and spanking his own butt to honking noises.

A full-bellied laugh, finally, followed.

A game of tag was really underfoot. Baam and Taeyang traded turns being "it" back and forth in rapid succession. But then Taeyang upped the ante. One time when she was it she decided to jump into the gong, twirl around in place, then _while upside down_ pulled out a bobby pin that she chucked over to him.

Baam slowed down to a halt. "That can't possibly count."

"It does now."

And so it began that to "tag" him Taeyang would start throwing random objects at him.

He was just glad she didn't chuck the toaster at him – that could cause some damage.

Dodging this way and that, Baam was determined to also add something to spice up the game – namely shinsoo reinforcement. If she could use her Class skills as a Spearbearer he could use his as a Wave Controller. Fair is fair.

Her eyes widened a fraction as Baam barreled into her – not tapping her like before but full on shoulder ramming her. She fell over but he managed to catch himself just in time before he managed to tip over himself.

"Tag."

She sighed, bangs flopping in her face as she exhaled.

He extended down a hand.

But instead of using it to hoist herself up, Taeyang clasped his forearm. "Thank you."

"For what?"

"For this. It was fun – I haven't had that in a while. And I wasn't expecting to have it _here_ of all places."

"Then why – "

The main door was flung open. He jumped to the side, his bang already formed – densely packed with power and filling by the moment. Taeyang got to her feet too, her hand flying up to her skull for some reason.

The figure revealed itself.

"Ruard?"

Honestly, he shouldn't have been surprised. He knew the boy was still in Ludina and hadn't gone far. He scanned over the two of them, taking in their stances with a lazy eye, "I figured you both would be here. Now calm the fuck down and follow me."

With that, he turned on his heel.

Taeyang then sighed, shrugged and stepped out of the ring.

He looked at them both for a moment then Viole stepped out as well.


	14. Chapter 14

When Viole stepped out of the rink he had to remind himself that it all wasn't a hallucination.

The change was back that drastic. Inside, while dim and crumbling, the rink was still more or less intact and there's was light enough to see, but outside there was no light at all. If he couldn't hear the sounds of Ruard's and Taeyang's footsteps ahead of him Viole would have truly been lost.

It was also cold out. He hadn't really felt the chill before when on the hill, but Viole felt it now. He felt it as the wind brushed by and wrapped him up in that icy embrace. He felt it as he glanced up at the cloudy, overcast sky.

He sneezed.

For one mad moment Viole thought there'd be a "Bless You" or something but only silence answered him.

So, he felt compelled to break that silence.

"Where are we going anyway?"

"That's … that's actually a good question," Taeyang admitted as she reached out a hand to Ruard's shoulder. "Where _are_ we going?"

"Not far now. Follow me."

And it wasn't. Not really. But it felt long to Viole as the trio walked along the abandoned street. The sight of more crumbling buildings, like the rink, could just be made out through the pitch-darkness. Once they passed by more buildings in disrepair he couldn't take it anymore – "What _happened_ here?"

"Do you know why this festival is called the Year of Victory Celebration, Viole? It says it right on the tin. It celebrates a year where Ludina had military victories against an old foe."

That was…off…to Viole. The festival itself hadn't seem militaristic in the foggiest - it was bright, cheerful, and vibrant. Could it really be fueled by something like hate? Just –

"Who is this enemy?"

Ruard answered – waving his hand into the air. His ever-present bored tone almost sounded tired as well.

"Us."

…..

He had no idea what he was looking at.

Viole had never seen anything like it. The blue wall of Shinsoo that Lero-Ro made right before the second test on the second floor came closest, but that still was not right. Where that was a solid blue wall, these were sigils inscribed on the ground and slithering this way and that. The space right above it shimmered.

"It separates the two sides."

"What's on the other side?"

Ruard didn't answer. "We need to cross but it'll be dangerous. I would understand if –"

"I'm in".

Ruard's usual expression was replaced with a smirk, "That was quick."

"Didn't have to think hard on it," Viole said as he approached the line. He could feel the pressure, the energy, wafting off it like waves even from the distance he stood at. "How do we cross it?"

"Watch."ar

Ruard stepped forward and stretched his hand out. That shimmer that Viole saw earlier seemed to solidify around his fingertips – taking on a blue glow that glimmered.

What happened next was hard for him to explain. It wasn't happening to Viole but he still felt it nevertheless. Shivers crawled up his arms and he felt a dampness, a coldness, struck at the pit of his stomach and spread outwards.

At the same time the sigil underneath Ruard's hand faded away.

He pulled his hand away and turned to Viole.

"We can wiggle through the gap, but having more of them be deactivated would be better. Try it."

Viole was pretty sure this was another test like with the stall game but walked up to the wall anyway.

He could feel the Shinsoo. Feel it licking at his skin, feel it through the gong as if he was waddling through water, feel an electric heat just humming with untapped energy. He stretched out his hand as well and felt the shinsoo snake between his fingers. Viole felt that coldness and raised it up, through his arm. He then felt he was in the innards of some beast – like his fingers brushed against vital organ.

He squeezed his hand into a fist.

The sigil right below didn't vanish. _All_ of them did. One after another after another. Just snapping into place.

"What – " Viole took a step back.

"Let's go."

"What – " Viole repeated again but Ruard was already gone.

Taeyang reassured him, "It'll come back in a moment. Don't worry," and then headed deeper within.

Viole still hesitated. He took a moment to stare at the ground where the string of sigils once stood but then followed them.

…..

Viole had thought it was dark before, but the light from the city proper still filtered in. But as they had delved deeper into the outskirts, further away from the Hill, it became even darker. How would it look during the day? Honestly, Viole was not sure. It didn't help that he wasn't sure where they were anymore – if they were even in Ludina.

When they finally stopped Viole felt his whole body tense. They stood in front of an off-white triangular building. There were once twin doors in front of it, but now the entrance was replaced by a metal barricade. There was a military man standing in the front with a rifle in hand – not pointing it out at anyone but clearly at the ready. He did not have to be told to hide with the others when Taeyang and Ruard went into an alleyway out of sight.

"Who are these people? Are they dangerous?"

"They are the Scourges. Remnants from Gasiun's military from before the war. They are little more than bandits now. Heavily territorial," As Taeyang said this she kept her eyes honed on the man. "We should stay clear."

 _What is Gasiun?_ But more importantly than that, "I thought FUG started the war."

"It did," While Taeyang was focused on the nearby building, Ruard was looking in the complete opposite direction. "Sort of. It's complicated. Anyway, the coast is clear – let's keep going."

Without much further warning he left. Viole and Taeyang caught each other's eyes for a moment.

Despite Ruard's assurance that the coast was clear Viole still kept expecting them to stumble across a Scourge patrol as they darted through the open. Even if they were crouched-running, Viole still felt overly exposed. That's because he could make the Scourges out in the distance, distinguishable not only by their fatigues but by an insignia patch stitched onto their shoulder. A picture of a screaming man clawing at his man with lines trailing down.

Actually, as he squinted he could just make out the red. "Is that real blood?"

"Don't be distracted."

As they crossed the street and drew nearer to their destination, it became clear to Viole just what it is. _A graveyard._ A circle of grey headstones lay before them, sitting on top ground that was covered in bare shrubbery and was packed and cracked by foot traffic. Viole didn't see any vaults. To be honest, it was pretty small.

Once they were out of sight from the patrols on the street Ruard stood up from where he was. Seeing that as a good of a sign as any that there was no need any more to be stealthy Viole also straightened up. The graveyard itself was as small as it appeared. Made up only of that circle of tombstones and a single tree in the corner shading a chunk of the graveyard itself…the tree Ruard was heading to.

The tree itself didn't stand out to Viole at all. At least it didn't until Ruard reached into it and pulled out a wrapped and tied package.

"Okay, we're good. Let's head out."

Viole just stared at him. "Seriously? That's it?" He knew he was being loud but that was the only way to convey his incredulity. "Didn't you say this would be dangerous?"

"It is, especially if we were caught by the Scourges, _which may still happen if you don't quiet down._ "

And so, he did.

"Come on, this way."

And so, he followed.


	15. Chapter 15

The wall, or whatever it was, was back up by the time they got back.

The sigils swirled before them in patterns of blue. This time, Viole recognized that they did not sit flatly or smoothly on the ground but rather climbed up walls and through buildings.

Ruard laid a hand on his shoulder. Viole caught his eye and the message of "stay put for now" as the young man walked forward. "So, what now?" He couldn't help but ask Taeyang.

"Back to the Emporium."

"And?"

"And then we'll do what we did before." She smirked at him, "Both us and you."

That made him stop cold.

"How?"

"You'll find out."

…

After stepping out of the darkness into the light of the Hill, Viole found the street mostly empty.

The lantern-lights were still strung up but there were no people in sight, and the stalls themselves were gone

"Is the festival over? I didn't realize we were gone for so long."

"No, they just up and went to another part of the city. The Celebration lasts all night and moves from one part of the city to another."

Viole toed a half-eaten chocolate-covered apple on a stick on the ground – just one of the many trash that littered the Hill in the festival's wake, "The city is going wrecked in the morning."

"Meh." Viole looked up at Ruard. "At least it means that we won't have to worry about being spotted on the way back. Let's go."

Once more, Viole found himself following along after the duo. Though brighter it was no less cold out, the chill in the ruffled his form as the young boy hiked up the Hill. It was only when he found himself walking alone did Viole stop and look behind him.

They were both climbing the Hill much more slowly than he had. Taeyang a bit farther ahead than Ruard who was visibly struggling. It seemed strange to Viole – was it really that difficult? One would think that a simple application of shinsoo would suffice.

"What was that about?"

"The Hill didn't want us to go up."

 _What?_

"What Ruard means is that Ulipus Hill was designed so defenders could easily descend and attackers struggle to move – at least if you start at the base that is."

"If that's the case than why was I unaffected?"

A silence came over everyone as the two looked at him.

 _Oh._

…

Dr. Lasco was waiting for them when they arrived back at his store.

Well, specifically, he was waiting outside by a back entrance and was waving them frantically inside.

Despite his urgency there wasn't really a rush, there wasn't anyone nearby. Even if someone further down below were to look up to the crest of the Hill all they would see were the buildings huddled on it like a crown. The Emporium just one of many.

Viole was patted on his back as he entered, but then Lasco stepped away from the doorway to give Taeyang and Ruard a wide berth. "Well, it was, ah, an experience meeting you all. I was forced to clear out some space in my storage area, so you can all be on your way."

"That eager to see us go, old man?" A rare smile cut across Ruard's face – it wasn't a nice one. "We can always find someone else to be of use if you are no longer able to be."

The man's face paled – taking on the same hue as his sideburns.

Ruard walked past him without a word, Taeyang bowed her head in apology as she did the same but Viole stopped.

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah," Lasco said after a moment. "Yeah, I am. Death threats seem normal when dealing with you people." Horror struck across his face, "I mean no offense!" He sputtered, "I just meant – I"

"Calm down, it's alright."

And he did, eventually. His breaths slowing down. "I really am sorry about this."

"Don't worry about it."

He smiled in response, "You know, you seem like a pretty good kid." The _I don't know why you are with these people_ went unsaid. For the best in the end. If the elderly man had another slip up, he would probably have a heart attack. "I think I calmed down just by talking to you. Had my nerves up with the pressure."

"Pressure?"

"You know, I was told that a VIP was coming and if anything happened to him I would be held responsible." Lasco jutted his thumb over his shoulder at the door that Ruard and Taeyang had left through. "He seems pretty laidback, but he has a vicious streak, don't he?"

Viole didn't answer as he stared at the man. Lasco's smile faltered. "Did I – "

"No! No. He's a slippery one, that one. Ha. I guess, yeah, I guess I'll be heading off."

Viole began to move.

"Okay. See you – Okay."

Viole moved faster.

…

"Had a good talk?"

"I hope you weren't stupid and told him something you shouldn't have."

Ruard leaned against one of the walls, arms crossed. Meanwhile, Taeyang sat on the bare mattress one leg crossing the other. The room itself looked much different than before. A good half of the clutter was gone; not shoved into a corner of the room but gone. It left a ring of space around the bed.

"So, what now?"

"Now," Taeyang said, standing up, "You take a nap."

She gestured down to the bed.

"What?"

"I did say that we would do what we did before."  
"But how? Jiggu isn't here."

"Like this."

Taeyang threw off the blond wig – letting it thump to the floor. The skullcap went with it a moment later. Her hair, black fire that undulated in the light, was fully released. It looked like a halo around her skull and she ran her fingers through it and sighed.

" _Much_ better."

Before Viole could ask what should he do next, Taeyang held two fingers up, and trapped between them was a single string.

"Get on the bed, Viole."

As he did, he watched as the strand lengthened, widened, and flattened. It took on a new texture too – looking soft to the touch like cloth; like …

"A blindfold?"

"Yep. Put it on and lay back and you'll fall asleep in no time."

"Is this a Family thing?"

"Basically."

He stretched out a hand and Taeyang dropped it into his palm. It felt as soft as it looked. He could feel an energy, a sort of heat, in it before wordlessly tying it around his head. He laid down.

"So, how is this – "

All was black.

...

"Welcome back".

…

Viole woke up slowly; cracking open his eyes to a brightly lit room. He suspected he was back in the compound. The room itself was bare. The hue radiated out functionality and practicality. It was not painted a pure white, but it's light tan served just as well. It was also sparsely furnished – there was only a corner dresser with a lamp on top it, a tall mirror, the bed itself and a closet…

That had his disguise hanging on the back of the closed door.

Viole glanced down to find himself dressed in a black nightgown. He ran a finger over the collar and felt it's smooth and soft texture. _How?_ Well, first thing first, he best find some other clothes to change into and see was around.

Getting up from the bed, Viole strolled across the room to the closet. The nightgown seemed to glide with him. He kind of regretted that he would need to change out of it, actually. It was comfy

He opened the closet. He stared.

Viole was faced with one outfit, and one outfit alone, waiting for him within the closet's depth. Black as well like the gown, but looked closer to the robes that he wore as his disguise.

It was only as he pulled it out did he see the red spots.

The black holes in the middle of them bore into him.

…

Viole walked out, the robes swirling about his ankles. It was harder than it looked to stay balanced in it. The hallway outside his room began to slowly fill up. Instantly, Viole could feel eyes upon him. Mercenaries gave him a large berth when they passed by him, but it was only as a Devoted came into sight and gave him a deep bow, did he come to a complete halt.

The white clad figure vanished out of sight.

"What's going on?"

"It's what you're wearing."

Hwa Ryun sat on an open windowsill, back to the courtyard, legs crossed, and hands folded neatly in her lap. Viole glanced up to her face and froze. He felt like he was underwater – not drowning per se, but looking at the world through a muted lens.

She was not smiling when she hopped down – circling him with slow, steady strides. It took him a moment to realize she was looking at the robe, staring at the spots.

"…Is there something wrong?"

The frown shifted slightly – not her usual smirksmile but still an upturn of her lips.

"Not with you."

"I see." He didn't. "Then do you have an issue with these clothes?"

"Do you know what those insignias mean, Viole?"

Though it was a quintessential Hwa Ryun answer he was still thrown off.

"They are the sign of the Slayer. They show that you're a Candidate."

"Then why are you angry? You're the one who handed me over to FUG."

"I'm not really. I'm mad at what will follow."

 _What?_ He wondered as she finally stopped pacing. She leaned forward, her lone eye homed in on his. Her next words held the weight of certainty.

"Things will speed up. Do not tell them you are a Candidate."

"Them?"

And now the smirksmile was back in full force.

"So, where are you heading Viole?"

To be honest, he hadn't had a destination before but now…

"I think I should talk to Ha Jinsung."

Her smile widened.

"He's in the Main Hall."

…

While functional one of the things Viole noticed was that as he neared the throne room his surroundings became more and more opulent. Armored statues lined the walls, porcelain vases on small tables in between them, and a plush red carpet lay underfoot. He had to wonder who this originally belonged to. It couldn't have been the "Bandit King", could it?

The long hallway finally reached its end. Twin giant doors waited him on the other end. He flung them open.

Viole stepped through and froze once more.

Ha Jinsung wasn't waiting on the other side.

Luslec Mirchea Grace was.

Viole felt a pressure all around him, as if Grace was commanding him to knell just by being there. Just by lounging on that throne. But before Viole could Grace spoke up, the Ranker's voice resonating.

"Ah, just the one I wanted to see."

"…your Grace?" Was it a coincidence that he addressed him like a Devoted would or was that just the normal reaction?

"I have a mission for you."

...

A/N: Alright, that's it for the "standard" chapters. Following this the story goes into an "arc". It makes use of images, music and invisible text. You can find the other chapters on the site Spacebattles, specifically by Googling _In the Dark (Tower of God)_

Hope you enjoy!


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